Krait book 09 The Two Princes
by slytherinsal
Summary: When Constance Hardbroom appeals to her nephew Severus Snape for aid, much is discovered about the evil Agatha Cackle and her relationship to Grindelwald.  The fight against ODESSA continues. More from the book version Worst Witch than the TV
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The weddings of the year were to be launched from Malfoy Manor.

Lucius Malfoy was hosting the triple wedding; that of his nephew Abraxus to his Myrtle, of his niece Sephara to her adored Neville; and his friend David to his childhood sweetheart Ellie.

The other New Marauders he rather mixed feelings. Of course they were glad for Abraxus; and he and Myrtle had been close as paint on a fence – Kinat's term – since Abraxus had sacrificed his hand to give her life; but it was, in a way, a breaking of their long-held fellowship.

Both Hawke and Romulus had sweethearts; but Lynx and Senagra were only just about to enter the fifth in the new school year and it would be some years before they might be wed! As for Kinat, he was without a permanent girlfriend, despite the best efforts of Garjala Gan Golgo.

It might have been a quadruple wedding but for the impatience of Sirius Black and his bride Willow Prince. Willow and Sirius got married out of hand and in a private ceremony that they shared with Hagrid and Alice and with only Harry and Ginny present the day after term ended.

The other blood kin were not offended. To them the true marriage had been the deep joining that they had all felt occurring when the couple joined souls; they were all too close to care about outward trappings. The very public launch of these marriages were really to please Lucius because he liked to do what he saw as nice things for people, and his friends humoured him.

Besides, by supporting the marriage of Sephara to an extremely eligible bachelor like Neville Longbottom, Lucius got to cock a snoot at his sister Odilia, Sephara's unpleasant mother.

Everyone who was anyone was to be at the wedding; and Lucius had also invited to stay on those offspring who would be starting Hogwarts together with his sister-in-law Bella and his adoptive twin daughters Griselen and Genavka.

One of the new ones was to be Jocelyn Malfoy; and Lucius quite liked Orme, his cousin, the boy's father, a quiet man who had remained out of the way of Tom Riddle and who had an understated sense of humour that passed many by. On the other hand, Lucius could not bear Orme's wife, Linda, born Bulstrode, and who Lucius called the Venal Viper.

Lucius was of the opinion that, since Jocelyn was an only child born within eight months of the wedding, Linda had slept with Orme once in order to get him to a marriage ceremony.

Orme tended to ignore his wife.

"What ho, Lucius, I see you've decided to take over Hogwarts by adopting and begetting your way into all the available places" he said cheerfully.

With the recently adopted eight children of Lucius' third wife – or second mistress dependant on your viewpoint – and Tanjela's rapid presentation of a son to her new husband allied with the obvious pregnancies of the other two ladies, Lucius had to grin.

"Yes, I asked Narcissa to do her best to wait until after the wedding to give birth" he joked "So I'm not totally in favour right now. Charlotte's expecting another set of twins so with them and Cosmo that's one Malfoy for each school House for this year, not counting my second grandchild who's on the way!"

"Fool" said Orme, amicably "Run along, Joss, and find Bella and the others!"

Charlotte and Narcissa were not the only ones expecting; as Lucius had mentioned, Grace was also pregnant with Draco's second child, and this time everything seemed to be going well. Grace was delighted; she had almost accepted that the birth of Edward might have prevented her from having any more children. And two other blood group women were pregnant too; Ginny Potter was expecting her third child to join two year old Molly and nine-month old James Sirius; and Hermione Weasley was also finally expecting her first child.

Molly Weasley was over the moon. She had almost despaired of her daughter-in-law giving her any grandchildren; which as Ron had said was really a bit daft because he had plenty of brothers to produce grandchildren not to mention Ginny's efforts to outdo her mother and come up with another Quidditch team worth or more.

Ginny had poked her brother for that.

"Molly worries unnecessarily about lots of things" Harry had said lazily "Just say 'yes mum' and ignore her like you always used to."

"It upsets Hermione" said Ron.

"Well tell her it's your wishes and hers that count not your mother's" said Harry, finding it hard to imagine the self-sufficient Hermione upset. But then she had been a bit down when Krait told her to take her own road and never mind Molly a couple of years ago; it was because Hermione loved Molly that her mother-in-law could – so unintentionally! – hurt her by her assumption that a woman must always want babies straight away and as many as possible.

When the Snapes arrived it was plain that Sirri was expecting again too. She wore her human sized form pretty much all the time now; it made life easier.

"All around the same time?" said Harry, dazed. "I swear there are six women ready to pop within about three months of each other!"

"November to February; cold dark and miserable. Nothing else to do but make out" said Krait, succinctly. "No, I'm not breeding right now, nor is Dione, we have more sense than to have too many babies too quickly; when the potions work anyway! Run along Mimi and find Bella and the twins" she added to Sirri's oldest daughter, a pure bred house elf from Sirri's time as a slave. The tiny girl went running happily off, her pigtail bouncing on her back like any other schoolgirl.

Alexander Yaxley was there as well, his older sisters already at Hogwarts and close confederates of the Snape-Malfoy ménages. He hardly noticed that Mimi was an Elf; but Jocelyn blinked as Bella, Griselen and Genavka embraced the tiny girl and introduced their cousin to another prospective Weevil.

"ELVES?" he said.

Getting used to goblins at Hogwarts was taking some doing for some.

"My brothers and sisters all go to Hogwarts, why shouldn't I?" squeaked Mimi

"There are already elves in classes?" said Jocelyn.

"Her siblings are human" said Bella "There is an elf there, Polly, but Mimi's adopted, 'cos her mum is one of her adoptive dad's mistresses, same as Grissy and Geni here are Lucius' kids by law and Tanjela's by blood. Same thing."

"Is that quite….moral? I mean is it right to make an elf be a human's mistress?" said Jocelyn.

"Nobody makes mummy!" said Mimi "She wanted to be with daddy! And she has a big form with transfiguration, and when I'm big enough I'm going to be a human animagus too so I can reach things more easily."

"Oh" said Jocelyn doubtfully. "Are we expecting any other weevils?" he asked hastily.

"Two more" said Bella "Kinat's little brother Sorjak is coming and we know HE'll be all right because his brother's a New Marauder. And then there's Kordach's son. Stacey's already at school with Gorbrin and Erica in the second as they'll be; she's half human. KORDACH's not moral, he's a scarlet man, 'cos he has girls and dumps 'em. Though he does take care of those that have babies. Terazhor's one of his illegitimate ones too. Stacey's all right so we can hope her brother is too, only some goblin males can be a little…." She rocked her hand. "Kordach sent his daughter to Hogwarts without a quibble so I guess he's not sexist so his son didn't ought to be either. She'll be here I guess too."

"My Bulstode cousin will be too" said Jocelyn gloomily "Meliandra; she's my uncle's daughter. She's spoilt."

"Meliandra? She's one of Erica's and Gorbrin's friends" said Bella "Gorbrin's cool and he reckons she's nice. He says she reads cool books. She's going to stay on and they're going up to London together."

The Marauders, sundry brides, and others of the blood group compared NEWT results of course.

Hawke, to no-one's surprise had done well, with 'O' grades in all but one of his seven NEWTs having dropped to 'E' on the tricky passage in Ancient Runes.

"It comes of the Ancient Egyptians not having proper vowels" said Hawke resignedly.

Abraxus had been glad to get three 'O' grades in DADA, Potions and Transfigurations, and 'E' grades in the other three; so he grinned to see his brother cautiously comparing results with Willow, who had also taken seven, and noting the concealed relief on the part of each that the other had also dropped one NEWT to an 'E'. In Willow's case it was Charms where – unusually for her – her theory was dodgy. Abraxus thought it pretty amazing that Willow pulled such results out of the bag having just whelped – her own phrase – Sirius' puppies. It went to prove that knowing things thoroughly counted for more than revision.

The other two New Marauders both passed all six NEWTs they took well, Romulus managing five 'O' grades, dropping to 'E' for Herbology and Kinat taking four 'O's and two 'E' grades, in potions and transfigurations. Ellie smiled gently. She too had taken six but had only one 'O', in DADA; the rest at 'E' and she quite content with that. Even as Myrtle was content – indeed overjoyed – to have five NEWTs, three of them at 'O' grade. Indeed the academically weakest of the group, Sephara and Dione were well contented with four NEWTs, above the national average especially as Sephara had Herbology at 'O' grade and the rest at 'E', for a girl who did not enter school until she was thirteen and considered a squib a fantastic result! Dione was overjoyed to have gained 'O' for three of her subjects and had actually managed an 'E' for her potions, something she had never dreamed of!

It had earned her a very thorough kissing too which was even better.

David Fraser arrived with Rubeus Hagrid and his young bride Alice Trumball in tow and tiny twin baby boys. Alice was a Malfoy connection; Orme's father had had a torrid affair with a muggle girl while he was still at school, sneaking out to the nearby village of Camburnath so she was in fact as closely related as Jocelyn was to Lucius. She had firmly seduced Hagrid and left school right after her OWLs to marry him. Her babies had arrived early and David had been on hand to help deliver them when he went to check if she would be all right to attend his wedding. Hagrid was one of David's favourite people and Alice was a protégé of his.

Hagrid was rather nervous in the grand surroundings of Malfoy Manor but Alice had sewed him a robe for the occasion and had trimmed his beard for him to make him feel better about going somewhere so grand.

Alice was not in the least awed.

Alice took life as she found it; and cheerfully introduced Dair and Luis to their uncle Lucius.

"They're 'Oak' and 'Rowan' in the Celtic" she said in her soft Scots lilt "it aye seemed appropriate tae name them for michty trees wi' their parentage; Dair's the dark one and isnae Luis red the noo!"

"As a Weasley" said Lucius. "Yes, I'm familiar with the sacred trees of the ancients; I got an 'O' in my Ancient Runes NEWT, I can even still read Oghhams. It's well to put them under the protection of the Forbidden Forest, as they're not fully human. Have you introduced them to the trees?"

"Och, d'ye tak' me for a fuul? Wasnae it the firrst thing we did!" said Alice. "We'll no' hae ony fey folk afther OOR bairns!"

The triple wedding was a grand affair.

David Fraser was the first to be wed; Hagrid was his best man, as David's oldest friend from Hogwarts. Vasilica, David's adopted daughter was a bridesmaid with Ellie's infant triplet siblings Harry, Ronald and Ishbel as pages and flower girl solemnly following hand in hand, with Vasilica gently keeping them in the right place. David had also asked the other two Romanian orphans in whom he took an interest to be flower girls rather than full bridesmaids and they were delighted! Grutch was beaming as he gave his little girl away; he was delighted that she was so happy, and that David was well connected was an added bonus!

Abraxus was almost as white as he had been the day he had pulled Myrtle's reconstituted body out of the ritual Cauldron. As Myrtle's father was dead, Severus gave her away since he had helped engineer her rebirth; it seemed appropriate somehow. Naturally, Abraxus' best man was his twin, Hawke.

Myrtle's closest female friends were Sephara and Ellie, which left Abraxus' sisters as bridesmaids, and at five Avice and Alienora were adorable, and Helya and Rowena at the same age as Ellie's siblings in need of watching as flower girls since Helya had a bad habit of trying to eat flowers after once having had nasturtiums in a salad.

Sephara was given away by Lucius of course; her little sister Ludmila was her chief bridesmaid and Lilith Snape agreeing to be left out as she would want to be bridesmaid to sundry of her sisters and being a bridesmaid too often could be unlucky. Sephara, being a kind girl, had asked the Snapes' female wards if they would like to be her bridesmaids too; so Melody and Harmony Bloom and little Lucy Ingate were there too, and on due consideration Sephara also invited Dympna Burke to help her to feel more one with the others now she was in the orphanage. Neville had agreed; the shock of her husband's arrest had driven Mrs Burke insane and Neville knew what it was like to have parents who did not even know you because they had retreated so far from the world. Neville had asked Harry to be his best man with a slight hesitation; he almost asked Severus but as Severus was to give Myrtle away, that was quite enough limelight for so private a man. Neville knew – and appreciated deeply – how much Severus hated being under public scrutiny.

Dympna, or Dimsie as she now styled herself, was deeply grateful. She had asked it her brother Philip might come to meet the other new first years to be, and had been readily given permission.

The other weevils in waiting had been cautious when this was sprung on them at the last minute, but Philip was a quiet, serious boy who listened before he spoke, nothing like as spoilt as his sister had been! He was his mother's child more; and was deeply upset by her illness. Like Jocelyn, Philip was taken aback at the concept of elves at Hogwarts; but if people like the Malfoys accepted it, it must be acceptable.

There were comments about a convict's daughter being so shameless as to be a bridesmaid at a society wedding of course; which were leaped upon by any of the bloodgroup or Lucius and his women if they heard them with comments to the effect that for one thing the child had committed no crime and therefore wherein should SHE feel any shame; and that moreover what business was it of anyone else.

And when Odilia Malfoy made a comment that it was typical of her stupid squib of a daughter not to know any better than to ask a child like THAT to be one of her bridesmaids she promptly fell to her knees vomiting slugs, clawing at the bats in her nose with boneless arms, covered in tentacles and boils, pale green and with her legs on backwards so numerous were the jinxes thrown at her wandlessly and wordlessly by any number of people.

It took four days in St Mungo's to return her to normality.

Or at least, as Hawke said, what passed for such an acidulated old besom as normality.

After that display of concentrated disapproval most kept their mouths shut about anything they did not consider 'quaite naice'.

Hagrid's reaction to unpleasant comments was a bit more straightforward.

He took Sephara's father, who was murmuring about Lucius having no taste to launch a squib as though she was normal, and stuffed him head down in the well where muffled oaths echoed dimly. Hagrid thought Sephara a nice girl and certainly no squib; and even if she were, there was no call to treat her as retarded!

Lucius himself had the delight of dealing with the Venal Viper as she enumerated Mr Burke's crimes to several goggle eyed ladies from closer to the fringes of society.

He said,

"Of course Linda knows a lot about Aloysius Burke's crimes as she has always been one of his best customers; naturally we shall give her son the courtesy of not mentioning HIS mother's convictions when the Aurors catch up with her."

As Linda Bulstrode Malfoy paled, Lucius made a note to have Alastor Moody actually check her out.

Crimes of that level were adequate grounds for divorce after all.

Besides, even if she was innocent being crawled all over by the auror office ought to discommode her significantly; and that thought made Lucius feel warm inside.

Comments made generally about goblins and house elves bearing wands and going to Hogwarts started to falter when the guests noticed that those who made comments were being photographed and notes made about them by a plain, dark-haired girl with the help of some goblin boy.

The goblin boy was of course Gorbrin; and contrary to popular belief they were not undertaking a survey of who was to be left off Lucius Malfoy's guest list. They had a far more serious purpose in mind and were listing potential suspects for goblin coursing or causing trouble in goblin communities.

Meliandra and Gorbrin intended creating complete dossiers on those people who disapproved of goblins; and were investigating whether they were just old fashioned and a bit slow to adjust or whether they were likely to be proactive in their prejudices. The files were consequently subsequently labelled SB or TB for 'Stupid Bastard' or 'Thoroughgoing Bastard' according to their likelihood to prove trouble.

Since the guests who disliked Goblins thought this was Lucius' way of making a point they ground their teeth and said nothing; had they known the thoroughness with which the children went about their detective game they might have been more homicidally inclined.

Lucius thought it highly amusing.

Lucius enjoyed the byplay at social functions.

He was always a political animal; and a social animal too.

And it was such an amusing hobby to add the odd word or phrase to fuel the fire of smouldering resentments between various of his guests.

Arthur Weasley was looking at him a little askance.

"Arthur! You're not telling me you LIKE the Corbins OR my repellent Yaxley nephews are you?" he said. "I know for a fact you've had run-ins with both Godfrey and Achilles over sailing close to the wind in respect of muggles. And the Corbins are stuck up!"

"I wasn't necessarily disapproving of your baiting" said Arthur mildly "Just wondering if you were aware that you son Gorbrin is taking risks with that friend of his to get you your information on goblin haters."

Lucius tilted his head sharply to look enquiringly at Arthur.

"It's not for me; they're playing some obscure game of their own because they're mad on Auror Whodunnits" he said "What are they doing that's risky?"

"I'd have said letting certain people know they're taking an interest in their views was risky" said Arthur.

"Are you stating the common view that it's on my behalf?" Lucius asked.

Arthur shrugged.

"I think that would be generally assumed."

Lucius gave a quick nod of satisfaction.

"Then that should protect them; these people know my arm is long and that I'd not be scrupulous over involving the law if my own family was involved."

"Lucius, I liked the way you said that; but forgive me, not everyone realises that you really do look on this boy and his siblings as 'your own family' you know. Especially those to whom goblins are NOT people. It's taken ME a while to adjust to seeing goblins with wands without wanting to go for mine in a knee-jerk reaction of fear."

"Arthur, you're a big man to admit that" said Lucius "My respect for you grows. Especially as you have resisted what must be a great temptation to say 'ah yes, the Malfoys, such a FECUND family'."

Arthur grinned.

"Well you've surpassed me in just the children that are your own let alone adoptees; I'd not expect Molly to have so many, but spread over several women….do you really love them all equally, Lucius? I find it extraordinary!"

"Yes Arthur, I do; in different ways, but equally. I have three wonderful wives all of whom henpeck me lovingly" he said softly. "As I love all the children; adopted or those of my blood. Draco is my firstborn; I can't help a little partiality there, but as he's grown up it doesn't show so I don't have to be as careful in front of the others to hide it. But I find I forget without concentrating that Erica, Nathan and Tanjela's children are not mine."

Arthur started.

"I thought Erica and Nathan WERE yours!"

"No Arthur; they are half siblings; and also half siblings of Jade and Lydia. My obnoxious nephew Jonathon got about. We agreed it would be a more convenient fiction to let Nathan forget he had any mother but Charlotte – his own is dead – and to let most people assume I had kept Charlotte stashed quietly for years. As though I could have hidden having a muggle mistress from Tom Riddle! Fortunately few enough people knew the power of his legilimensy, the cruel trawling of the thoughts to check for deviancy from devotion and the taunting of the disloyal thoughts making you sweat wondering if you would get the cruciatus curse or be let off….it was analysing that which diametrically altered my viewpoint on house elves. But that's by the by; I ask you to keep their true origins to yourself but it is well to be aware of it. Fortunately Nathan is too young to be likely to want to marry Jade or Lydia but it's one of the things to be aware of in the future with consanguinity. I don't want to see the Malfoys go as insane as the Gaunts thank you!"

"Little chance of that with so er, broad a base of backgrounds" said Arthur dryly. "I wish you'd say something outrageous, Lucius; I'm in deep danger of coming close to liking you on occasion."

"Hmm, that will never do. Shall I tell you about my plans to free my cousin Orme from his loathsome wife?"

"I wouldn't; I'm horribly afraid I might agree too much. What a poisonous woman she is! I believe she's worse than your sister, and I was up at Hogwarts with HER."

"It's a tough contest between them, isn't it? What's the prize for being the most poisonous, using her face to launch a thousand ships? I pity the ships in the case of either, bound to be unlucky!"

Arthur laughed.

"You are quite the snidest man I know Lucius and I should NOT laugh! What ARE you going to do about Loathsome Linda?"

"That's almost as good as my name for her, the Venal Viper…. I was planning to shop her to Alastor for Goblin coursing and see her deal with constant vigilance. Jocelyn will be out of the way at school so he won't be being scared by it and Orme will watch with faintly cynical amusement."

"Any likelihood it's true?" asked Arthur. Lucius frowned.

"I….don't know; but as I wouldn't rule it out it's not wasting Alastor's time. If Orme's in a book he wouldn't notice if she rode through the house after all of Gringott's with the Wild Hunt as her hunting companions. Quite as bad as Severus is Orme in his own way. Jocelyn fortunately takes more after his father than his mother with a healthy dose of Quidditch enjoyment and a cheerful disregard for the family china. A perfectly normal healthy little boy in other words and takes his punishment like a man when he knows he's done wrong. I like Joss; and I'd like him to be shot of a rather awful mother, and definitely NOT get dragged into something unsavoury that he feels his duty forces him to protect his mother over."

"Poor little boy either way" said Arthur.

"He'll have the rest of us standing by him" said Lucius "If they'll rally round for the Burke child, who I have heard described as 'a stinking bullying little cow turd' by Jade, then they certainly will for a harmless child like Jocelyn."

Arthur nodded.

"I think if I were you though, I'd ask Jade to keep an eye out on Gorbrin and this Meli – what it was – child. Just in case."

Lucius nodded.

"I agree, Arthur; thank you for the suggestion. And I'll drop a hint to the famous detectives as well. And if I can extract it, I'll run you off a copy of their book they're writing, of the hilarious and improbable mysteries and adventures of the twin children of an auror. It's not meant as comedy but Gorbrin let me read it and I laughed until I cried. Of course I never told him that! There's style to it and one day they might write something worthwhile but meantime it's an excellent pick-me-up!"

"You need a pick-me-up with three wives?"

"Will two pregnancies and a wedding being organised and Cosmo's incipient teeth I need a pick-me-up BECAUSE I have three wives" said Lucius. "I love them dearly but the last few days have been….nervous."

"Well, it's your own fault for being a randy swine" said Arthur. "Lucius, I thought Severus and Krait were utterly and completely bound up in each other but….."

"But theirs is different" said Lucius "They have so much love for each other that they can afford to share some out to the unloved. I don't think I could handle it; but I'm ultimately a far more selfish person than either Severus or Krait. And I enjoy it that way. I don't take a goblin mistress to please the goblin community; so discount any stories you hear about that. I take Tanjela as my wife because I love Tanjela and frankly her race is a matter of complete indifference to me."

"I think, Lucius, that actually makes you a nicer person than had the former been true" said Arthur.

"Arthur; get this through your dense Weasley head – if it can penetrate all that ginger thatch – that I am not in any way shape or form nice" said Lucius.

Arthur laughed.

Lucius might still have a strong streak of selfishness as well as the wickedest tongue in the wizarding world; but Arthur thought he had changed a very great deal and had a broader streak of niceness than he cared to admit. Even to himself.

The final note to the wedding was played by Lynx Black-Weasley who managed to confund Lucius' white peacock - and only Lucius would be a posy enough git to have white peacocks, as she later said – to believe that Linda Bulstrode Malfoy was a rival male and chased her off the premises shrieking.

"Peacocks are nasty critters" said Lynx smugly "Almost as bad as blast-ended Pekes. A goat would have been even more entertaining though."

Hawke clipped her across the back of the head with two fingers in traditional manner.

"Thanks Hawke; I needed that!" she grinned.

Hawke kissed her lightly.

Time enough for any more that that when she finished her OWLs.

Narcissa was glad to get rid of the guests.

"I think I'm starting labour" she said quite calmly "And the last of them gone in the nick of time!"

"Well let's get you comfy and leave Reedy to bully the other elves into tidying up" said Charlotte "She's in her element being in charge and you'd rather she was in charge there than in charge midwifing."

"Every time" said Narcissa "I'm not sure I like being bullied by my house elves. And then she does something so kind I have to bite my tongue on the sharp comment I had been going to make….aaargh!"

This was Narcissa's fourth baby; and with midwifery spells from Lucius she soon enough delivered another baby girl.

"What, another girl?" said Narcissa "I was going to call a boy Scorpius…I'm feeling uninspired about star names for the Black connection and I've used the only half decent Malfoy name, Lucasta….."

"How about a more subtle star connection with a flower name?" suggested Charlotte.

"Go on"

"Well, there's a bush, several varieties of it in fact, called 'Andromeda' colloquially" said Charlotte "I came upon it in a gardening book when your Andromeda was born and thought about names at the time… the proper name is Pieris."

"Pieris? I like that. It's unusual without being outlandish the way some muggle names are" said Narcissa "I mean, Chelsea, Kimberley, Shannon, Erin…all place names, not proper girls' names at all. You wonder if some of these muggles are going to follow to the logical conclusion and call their poor brats Battersea or Bognor."

Charlotte laughed.

"Some people do pick the most odd names" she said "Kimberley was originally a boy's name, to commemorate a battle; naming a boy after a battle was supposed to imbue him with manly qualities."

Narcissa considered this.

"That's suggestive that muggles are trying to intuitively seek magical connection" she said "Interesting. And fairly logical… I withdraw objections to Kimberly as a boy's name. But for a girl? I mean it was all very well for the Saxons to use names like Battle-Maiden, Hilda, and those names have the cachet of age and the advantage of being arithmantically strong as well when you do the numerology on them but….."

Charlotte laughed.

"Well at least some of the other battle names of the era of Kimberly haven't survived" she said "Who'd want a child of either gender with a monicker like Magersfontein?"

"It is a little over the top" said Narcissa. "Though there's a certain grandeur to it; it rolls of the tongue. Still, one can also see it attached to a skinny kid who isn't even tall enough for it, let alone bulky enough…. It'd suit a Bulstrode well enough but not a Malfoy or a Snape!"

Charlotte just smiled.

She found the naming conventions of the wizarding world sometimes quite as ludicrous as the offerings of the ill educated amongst the muggle community. And when the rich and famous who were ill educated decided to call their offspring for the place they were conceived, like Brooklyn for a boy, then it was no wonder that their adoring public were likely to follow suit. Charlotte lived in expectation of hearing of a child accordingly named 'Thebackofdad'sFordCortina' or at least 'Cortina'

Pieris was not a name from either community though both drew on flower names; but it had the advantage of not being outlandish to either as Narcissa had said. And most Muggles would just take it as a feminine form of Pierre.

And the baby was welcome, even if Narcissa might have been a little disappointed not to have another boy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Gorbrin and Meliandra had travelled with Lucius to London to the Umbrous Alley complex where Gorbrin had been living before Lucius swept them all up and away. Lucius took them first to see the printing works in Umbrous Alley; the next morning was to be the first issue of the 'Wizarding Times' and Lucius wanted to supervise 'putting the paper to bed' at the small hours of the morning as well as seeing that 'Witch and Kitchen' had no last minute hitches either. The latter was to be a weekly affair and one of the articles the first issue carried was of the triple wedding and notes that the three grooms had been among those who had defeated Voldemort. That Ellie also wore the zig-zag scar proudly in the wedding photographs might be helpful to the status of half goblins too.

Lucius planned on writing a weekly column for the daily paper too, to keep alive issues he felt important; he had considered having separate pages of news about and for goblins, but decided that the point was made better if all the news was together, in order of importance not segregated in a kind of literary apartheid.

The children found the whole process of making a newspaper quite fascinating, as well as the allied book printing and binding that Lucius had also ambitiously embarked upon. Bookbinding was a very skilled job!

Having had a good look about, the two children went out for a look around, since Meliandra wanted to see for herself the grinding poverty that Gorbrin had described. She did not feel qualified to help him make waves unless she HAD seen for herself.

At the far end of Umbrous Alley was a narrow lane known as 'The Walk' which led through to Umbrous Place North, where Gorbrin had been living. The buildings where he had lived next to his friend Jardak were old three or four story terraced houses, turned into tenement blocks for three or four of them being knocked into one, two staircases taken out, and then an apartment for each floor in each original building let to tenants, consisting of three or in better apartments four rooms. The bathroom and toilet block were out back.

Next to the building Gorbrin had lived in for four years was a purpose-built apartment block with inner courtyard, almost opposite The Walk; it should have been a better place to live, but somehow it was more squalid, less inviting than the poor but essentially neighbourly terraces. As they walked past the block, there was a cry of

"GARDYLOW!" and Gorbrin hastily pulled Meliandra aside as the body crashed onto the lane.

Meliandra cried out and ran to the body.

It had once been a little wizened witch of incalculable but very old age, and the first signs of decomposition gases were released by the force of the fall, making Meliandra gag.

The face of a wizard appeared out of the window.

"I'd stay back if I was you, kid, she's well rotting" he said.

"But – how come nobody found her before, helped her?" said Melinadra.

The man shrugged.

"Presumably no friends or family. I only call once a month for the rent. She was behind anyhows with her rent; at least when I've had this place scrubbed I can re-let it now. Merlin's teeth what a stink! You kids want to earn three Galleons scrubbing it out?"

"Thanks sir, but we have duties already…. But I know some kids who might" said Gorbrin.

"Good; send them up and tell them to wear rags over their noses. They'll earn their dosh all right!" said the rent collector.

"Is that….normal?" said Meliandra as they headed for one of the other tenements.

"Discarding a body that's behind with its rent? Fairly" said Gorbrin "Poor old dear, she was lucky if she was behind already not to have been evicted to die on the street; that rent collector has more compassion than some. Here we are" he ran down steps to an area to knock on a basement door.

The door opened on a careworn goblin woman.

"Oh, Madam Bral Jarzo, they're looking for people to clean out an apartment at The Block where an old witch died, I thought Gazan and Sadalla might like to earn some money; he was offering three Galleons."

The woman's face brightened.

"Y'here that you two? You go up there right now!" she said.

"The rent collector said, don't forget to put rags over your faces" said Gorbrin.

"Eh, Gorbrin, ain't ya up fer it yerself?" said a goblin boy, Meliandra presumed Gazan.

"Well, my mum married again and I don't need the money so much these days so I thought I'd pass it on" said Gorbrin. "My new dad's at work in the printing works and we got to see round it my friend and me so I'm showing her around where I used to live."

"Well, ta, mate, that's good on yer" said Gazan, hustling his sister as she followed him.

Meliandra looked after them.

"They're older than us – well he is – where do they go to school?"

"Don't be silly Mel, they don't go to school. Most people don't you know. Sometimes someone a bit better educated will teach little kids to read in return for money or food or just odd jobs; Griselen and Genavka earned a bit doing that you know! But …. Well, I don't want to be snobby but Gazan and Sedalla aren't exactly Hogwarts material. They're not that bright, ignorant and proud of it, hard working enough but they'd make trouble just because."

"Is that why you let them think your new dad just works at the printworks?"

"Partly; but partly because it is kind of uncouth to rub people's faces in it you know" said Gorbrin "They may not really, deep down WANT the sort of education Hogwarts could give them but they're the sort that would resent that I have it if you see what I mean."

"Not entirely; it seems a little odd. If they resented it because they wanted it I could understand that. But why resent what you don't want?"

"Because they resent me having the option. Me, I work hard because I've been given the chance of the sort of education I would only have dreamed about even before dad was killed, because Goblins in the main just DIDN't; and that I'd have resented. Now I'd resent people like them going to Hogwarts because they'd only want it to say they had, and they'd muck around because essentially they have no ambition to be anything but factory line workers nor the ability to be anything more. They're the sort that would have moaned about not being permitted wands; but d'you think they'll get one when they're seventeen? Not hardly likely. Any more than their parents have. Places like this, not even all adult witches and wizards carry wands you know; they buy dedicated cleaning 'wands' perhaps as a luxury item and either do things muggle fashion or let the dirt pile up. Wands are expensive, real proper wands that choose you. A reconditioned one that's been broken, or a cleaning charm on a stick, they're much cheaper. And clothes are either washed out back on the bath house or taken to the hag who runs a laundry down the other end. In these areas people might almost as well be muggles for the level of magic they manage."

"How awful!" said Melinadra.

Gorbrin shrugged.

"It's the way it is" he said "Most people are familiar with magic at least, unlike muggles; they come across it in their place of work, those who have jobs. Most people around here work in the factories."

"What do they make?"

"Generally components of stuff sold as goblin-made; like the factory where mum worked made springs. All kind of springs, from fine ones to put in clocks up to heavy springs for carriages. The flying coach Dad Lucius owns has Warrington Springs. Plenty of watches do. Warrington is a human but as his factory employs all goblins and part goblins he can still say 'goblin made' for the cachet. There's one that turns out silver and pewter ware and also repairs it. That's only a small family factory, a goblin, his two sons and a son-in-law. There's one that mass produces wooden furniture that goes all over Britain; some of the chairs at Hogwarts have been made there. There's lockmakers and knife manufacturers – they make the silver knives we buy in Diagon Alley as well as general cutlery – two cauldron makers and a division of Nimbus Brooms. All sorts of things."

"I suppose we never question where things come from; we just buy them in Diagon Alley" said Meliandra. "At least, I never had."

"For every household job that a labour saving device helps with, for all the fun we have playing quidditch and for all out education there are poor wizards and goblins working away to produce them" said Gorbrin soberly "Most of them I'm afraid as determinedly ignorant as Gazan and Sadalla."

"Can't their lot be improved?"

"This is what dad – Lucius – is trying to do" said Gorbrin "By making sure he provides jobs that are well enough paid that have his workers perhaps hungry with ambition for their children. He's busy ruining Harris Warrington for trying to rape Mum, by the way; so I expect he'll be buying out Warrington springs soon."

"Does he want to buy out everyone?" giggled Meliandra.

"Everyone who's unscrupulous anyway. Him or others at the top; people like Professor Snape and Professor Black who don't really need to teach of course, they just choose to. It's a way of reaching out with ideas of changing the future I guess as well as teaching their own subjects. And it's what the free school will do; imbue ideas."

In this of course Gorbrin was correct in many essentials; save that in Severus' case at least the idea of giving up teaching had never actually even occurred to him. And Sirius had wanted to be there beside Willow once Harry was safe; and now was unable to find anyone who might teach Geomancy and so had – he said- no option but to stay.

Besides there was the atmosphere and camaraderie at Hogwarts!

Meliandra and Gorbrin had deliberately dressed down in plain hard wearing serviceable clothes such as Charlotte had introduced as suitable play clothes for children; most goblin males wore trousers and tunics rather than robes, and so did many goblin girls of tender years simply because of the hand-me-down factor. Meliandra had been found clothes to fit her by borrowing from the Snapes, since Erica was slighter than she; and so she wore jeans and a t-shirt. Such items were not in shape or form strange clothing, but the many goblin children playing in the street stopped and stared in envy at such relative finery. Some of them had made home-made fireworks from gunpowder liberated from the fireworks factory that was another of the industries in the neighbourhood; Gorbrin winced slightly and murmured to Meliandra,

"I've listened too much to Ross Tuthill on explosives not to be worried now."

She shrugged.

"Would warning them of the dangers stop them?"

"No I guess not" he conceded "And it brings some colour into otherwise drab lives. Uh oh, let's get out of the way."

Two grim looking wizards were coming down the street, looking at door numbers.

"Beat it you brats" one of them growled, aiming his comment at the poor children and Meliandra and Gorbrin equally. Gorbrin dragged Meliandra off in the direction the other kids retreated to.

"What's going on?" asked Meliandra. Gorbrin shrugged.

"They looked like a bookie's hit wizards to me; someone's defaulted on payment no doubt and is about to be thoroughly cursed. The usual arrangement is, when you make the payment and a small subsidiary fee you get the curse or jinx lifted. I heard once that private hit wizards are often drawn from dropouts or those expelled from Hogwarts; they've learned a decent range of hexes but can't get respectable employment."

"But if they've left early, how can they know enough?"

Gorbrin snorted.

"I keep telling you, people here don't USE much magic – the sort of corridor curses we know would be scary enough, we could probably reverse a jelly-legs jinx ourselves eventually but the people down here couldn't. As for the more exotic ones like the slug vomiting curse and the bat bogey hex, they wear off but they'd be frightening; and if some hit wizard said 'now you've had a taste of what I can do, give us the dosh or I'll make it permanent' well you and I know they're duration spells but people here DON'T because they have NO magical education except what little their parents know! And wand magic is a mystery to them you know!"

"You mean we'd actually be eligible to be hit wizards but for the age restrictions?"

"Exactly – and that's scary. And because of the MSHG and what I've learned from Draco, the probability is we might even be a match for those two. But I shouldn't like to find out" he added thoughtfully "Because they look mean."

"Too right" said Meliandra "Oh look, is that Peeves?"

Gorbrin glanced over at a human family coming down Umbrous Lane – they had walked the whole length of Umbrous Place to meet the main conduit – who were obviously going shopping with baskets on arms. They were followed by an apparition that did bear a passing resemblance to Peeves.

"No, I think that family just has a poltergeist" he said. "Goodness, what language! Peeves'd have a mouthfull of soap for words like that…. Excuse me sir, we're not allowed wands out of school but have you thought of using _Saponify_ to fill the fellow's mouth with soap or _Langlock_ to shut him up? It's what we do to Peeves at school."

The wizard wore a threadbare robe and looked harassed and looked for a moment as if he was going to blister Gorbrin with an oath. He took in his mode of speech and muggle-style clothing and changed his mind.

"Oh a Hogwarts goblin are you? One of Kordach's?"

"To the first yes, to the second no sir. My family had always been respectable" said Gorbrin proudly.

"Hmm, yes well, my apologies. Right, let's try…_saponify! Langlock!_"

Gorbrin wondered if it were a little overkill to fill the fellow's mouth with soap AND glue his tongue to the roof of his mouth but the provocation was great.

The wizard smiled a big beatific smile as the Poltergeist bubbled and grunted impotently.

"Well you DO learn useful things at a big school then! Never went to Hogwarts myself, went to a dame school in Dorset which offered three OWLs and one of those was in Muggle Studies….thank you young man; and I wish you the best of luck in YOUR studies."

"Thank you sir; and you know there's the free school starting in Obscura Alley, don't you, with scholarship transfer if anyone needs more facilities or for NEWTs?" said Gorbrin "I know the wizards teaching there – well, most of them – because of my stepfather's connections. They're very good, all of them. Your oldest lad looks about the right age."

"He's tall for his age; still he's bright, reckon they'd take him young?"

"If he's keen I reckon they won't even ask" said Gorbrin grinning.

The two children turned down Umbrous Lane to return to Umbrous Alley to meet up with Lucius who was going to send them home with Dudley in the Rolls – Jark was on holiday – and Gorbrin pointed out the square at the end of Umbrous Lane with its larger houses.

"That's Penumbrous Court; it's where the better off live, owners of factories, those that don't live outside somewhere posher, better off foremen and such, some property owners, like the ones as own our old place. Some of the people there are a bit shady, types like Kordach but not perhaps so keen on going legitimate. Kordach's not only ambitious he's actually quite canny, he has the opportunity of being a big noise in the legitimate world and he's jumping at it. There's a back lane through to the muggle road, Ravenscourt Park, it's got muggle repellent spells as well as being disguised by railway line. So they can get out into London without having to go past their tenants you know. We turn right here, see all the factories on the right; and that's Crepuscular Crescent on the left, the better off but not the best off live there. They fancy themselves; they're about as well off mostly as we used to be when dad was still a well paid clerk before he died. We had a house like them only off Diagon Alley, in Tangent Court, the other end to the shops."

Naturally Meliandra wanted to peer; here in the crescent all the houses were small, but detached, with a small perimeter of land around them, not enough to call a garden, but it separated one house from its neighbour.

"I have to say the friendliness of others in Umbrous Place North was the great compensation for the lack of space" said Gorbrin "In middle class dwellings, there's always an air of anxiety in case the family next door have got Nimbus family brooms instead of the good old fashioned Cleansweeps; or the shame of having to have pest control in to deal with chizpurfles or nifflers. The poor can't afford brooms so they don't bother to compare them; if someone gets a secondhand model everyone comes to have a go on it. I think I might write a social commentary book when I grow up; because then I shall have lived middle class, poor, and obscenely rich."

"That'd be really good – I say, Gorbrin, is that a body between those two factories?" Meliandra pointed as they turned back into Umbrous Alley.

"Good place for it if it is, next to the coffin maker" said Gorbrin "No, it moved….we'd better go look, though it's probably just somebody who's drunk."

"Why get drunk? Wouldn't it be better to save the money strong liquor costs?" said Meliandra.

"In theory yes; but in practise plenty use booze or potions to forget. I was always being asked for a Euphoria Inducing Potion, but the ingredients were too expensive to make it worth while" said Gorbrin "Why it's a child no older than us!"

The semi-conscious girl was indeed hardly older than them, though provocatively dressed with cheap, half rubbed off makeup, its garish colours outperformed by the multicoloured bruises that adorned her face and what they could see of her body.

She regarded them antagonistically and defensively, struggling to sit up.

"We're not here to hurt you, silly chit" said Meliandra "We came to help."

"We need to get her to dad; he knows healing spells" said Gorbrin.

"I ain't going to be pawed over by some flash goblin what thinks he knows how to fix a girl by screwing her" said the girl. "You look too posh to have an honest family."

"I'm not about to feel like helping a girl who miscalls my stepfather like that" said Gorbrin pugnaciously "You need help; we're not allowed to do wand work, obviously, 'cos we're no older than you, so I thought of him, and he doesn't have to pay for sex anyway even if he was a pervert to like kids as young as you. How old are you?"

She shrugged and winced.

"'Bout thirteen" she said "Near enough. Old enough to work HE said. Does your dad take pay to curse people? I want to curse the bastard that beat me up AND Degory Prod as well. I suppose you go to that Rowan school that you think of wand work."

"Who's Degory Prod?" asked Meliandra.

"Ruddy pimp, innit? Runs my ma. Said I was old enough to work. As if that weren't bad enough he goes orf inter the Hag's Arse and let me get beat up, then he beats me more 'cos I can't fight back against a grown man and he's pissed 'cos as well as beatin' on me the bastard didn't pay" a tear rolled down her cheek. "Here, you, missis, you talk posh, I s'pose you don't want a skivvy? Reckon I'd rather skivvy than open me legs."

"Right now you're doing neither" said Meliandra "We're going to help you up and get those wounds seen to and then I should think your er pimp is likely to get himself jinxed and beaten so hard he'll wish he'd never thought of peddling a little girl to perverts and hurting her so bad."

"Damn right" said Gorbrin grimly "And you won't be paying for it because he'll do that with pleasure. Dad's got eighteen kids counting us step kids; and then the twins on the way and he doesn't like people that beat on kids. I say, we need another one to field three quidditch teams" he added absently. Meliandra poked him.

Between them they helped the girl up.

"What's your name?" asked Meliandra "I'm Meliandra – people call me Melly – and this is Gorbrin."

"Lois. Lois Stavely. I ain't got a dad; at least, not one I ever met" she said.

She was in pain; but ignored it stoically as they helped her up the alley to the printing works.

"GAWD!" said Dudley, who was leaning on the car, entertaining several worshipful goblin children with an account of the Battle for Hogwarts.

"Oh please, Dudley, she's bad hurt, can you carry her up to dad?" said Gorbrin.

"'Course I can, young shaver" said Dudley, sweeping the child into his strong arms. "And give me two or three minutes with whoever did that to her too and they'll regret it!"

"Dad'll claim first bash" said Gorbrin.

"Ah well, RHIP" said Dudley "Maybe he'll be needing a hand though."

"AR – what?" whispered Meliandra.

"It's a Muggle acronym, stands for 'Rank Hath It's Privileges'" Gorbrin whispered back "Meaning that the Boss gets first pick or go or whatever. The Big D's more than a chauffeur, 'cos he's a friend of Draco's, but he has to be properly respectful in front of people. He doesn't half pick up a lot though from being with other chauffeurs and grooms at parties when they talk free about their bosses; 'cos they reckon that a muggle don't follow half what they're saying anyway. I'm afraid most of them are goblins and I'm afraid a lot of goblins are too impressed with their own cleverness to account anyone else having brains at all. So he passes it on to Dad."

They had reached the main office where Lucius was speaking to Madam Thomson, Editor of Witch Weekly.

"Merlin's beard!" said Lucius "Whatever happened to this poor child? You didn't run her over, Dudley?"

"No Sir!" said Dudley indignantly "The kids found her."

"I'm a whore" said Lois "And I was beat on my a client and by my pimp for not getting payment whilst being beaten on. These kids said his dad could curse them. Who are you?"

"She's thirteen, dad" said Gorbrin intensely "Can't something be done about it?"

"It has been" said Lucius grimly "The law has been passed bringing age of consent in line with muggles at sixteen years old. Now, my child, sit in the chair here…" he removed his wand from its concealment in the cane he carried with an easy twist and passed it over her, not even bothering to mutter 'episkayo'. Lucius enjoyed showing off, even to children.

Lois' eyes widened.

"It's stopped hurting!" she said.

Lucius had also cleaned her with the same pass of the wand, removing make up, grime, tears and mud.

She was a pretty child with hazel eyes, light brown hair and just a touch of the goblin about her.

"Tell him about that Degory Prod fellow like you told us" said Meliandra "Mr Malfoy FIXES things."

Lois' eyes were dilated half with fear.

"Did you say Mr Malfoy?" she said "But he – you mean you're the one whose father was killed? And he really HAS adopted you not just said so to the papers?"

"The Daily Prophet, unusual though the occurrence may be, has actually managed to accrue some small modicum of veracity within its frequently mendacious pages" said Gorbrin.

"You've been spending too much time listening to Severus Snape" said Lucius severely "Speaking in well rounded and sarcastic periods like that."

"You do it too" said Gorbrin.

"He has me there" said Lucius. "What he said, young Lois. Now, obviously we can't send you home; it is but a trip back into danger. Does your mother have nothing to say about her daughter being made to prostitute herself at so tender an age?"

"Ma can't fight no more" said Lois. "And besides, it mean she don't have to go out as often if it's me what's going."

Lucius sniffed.

"Well I suppose her will has been sapped by years of abuse" he said.

"My mum would NEVER let anyone hurt any of us" muttered Gorbrin "She'd let herself be hurt first and not tell us I bet."

"Your mother, Gorbrin, is a woman in millions" said Lucius. "Not all women are as strong."

Gorbrin and Meliandra exchanged a look.

Somehow it was a silent promise from Meliandra that she would never let her children be exploited, never give in no matter what.

Gorbrin thought, I'm going to marry her when we grow up.

"We'll see Lois to the orphanage I think" said Lucius "And I'll have my girls take care of her mother. Hmmm. Tempted as I am to deal with this pimp myself I believe I shall be unselfish and give him to Narcissa. She needs a bit of fun after birthing."

"Please, Mr Malfoy, he's big and tough and real nasty!" said Lois "No woman could handle him!"

"He's better at wand work than a deatheater? I find THAT hard to believe" said Lucius. Lois' mouth was an 'O'.

"She can do spells then?" she asked.

"Of course she can do spells girl! What do you think she wasted her time at school?" said Lucius "Are you a muggle or a squib then? If so he's even more at fault!"

"But women don't do spells, he said women are only for one thing…..you mean I could learn?"

Lucius swore sulphurously.

"MR MALFOY!" said Madam Thomson.

"My apologies my dear lady, and to the two young ladies" said Lucius "Though they pick up worse at school…...there is such an attitude? I knew some goblins adhered to it but….."

"They'll be the Shadow Court crowd" said Gorbrin "Mixed goblin and human and half breeds, brothel country. Machismo run mad, the men swagger, the women do what they're told. One of 'em tried to get my mum to work for him; she threatened to knee him in the bits if he didn't let go her arm, you'd've thought she'd threatened all the unforgivable curses and to hand him gift-wrapped to Voldemort the way he carried on. Only he never let go, so she whacked him where it hurt with her umbrella and promised to sharpen the end for if he ever came near her again. She didn't stray too close to that lane again."

"Yes, I can see Tanjela doing it" said Lucius appreciatively "I LOVE your mother, Gorbrin, I'd say she has cast iron ones the size of a quaffle if I wasn't afraid she'd tickle me unmercifully for that."

Gorbrin grinned.

He knew what Lucius meant.

"Does that mean posh women can deal with creeps then?" said Lois "'Cos I need to warn you, Mr Malfoy if she can't, he'd screw her even if she has just given birth to punish her."

"Narcissa will be delighted to deal with so precious a specimen" said Lucius "And I think it would be good for his image – in a wonderfully negative way – to be beaten up by a woman."

Meliandra giggled.

"You should have someone like Madam Malfoy-Snape do it; she looks so sweet and inoffensive" she said "And her no taller than me neither."

Lucius chuckled nastily.

"How very tempting" he said. "Yes, that's an excellent punishment. And Narcissa and Charlotte and Tanjela standing by to take away any girls who want rescuing as well as Lois' mother…what's her name, my dear?"

"Metella" said Lois.

"It's as good as sorted" said Lucius, pointing his wand. The silvery white form of his Patronus went flying off to carry his mentally formed message to Krait in London and his wives in Wiltshire. Lucius' patronus was a dragon; and had changed to that when Draco had dragged him from his destructive path following Voldemort. Krait was wont to murmur that nothing less than a ruddy dragon would suit someone as shamelessly ostentatious as Lucius anyway.

There were four 'CRAC' sounds as Krait and the Madams Malfoy apparated in. Which is to say, Narcissa side-along apported her sister wives. Lucius looked fondly at his wives and purred gently; then explained what was going on.

Krait grinned. Looking sweet and then beating up bad guys was a role she enjoyed.

"Can we watch?" said Gorbrin.

"Only if you stay close to Dudley and me" said Lucius "We'll remain discreetly in the background and let the girls play."

"Lucius thinks up the nicest entertainments" cooed Narcissa. "Can I have any others who try to join in?"

"Feel free, my dear" said Lucius.

Lois was staring. These confident women who walked tall and expected to win against men were totally outside her ken!

"Degory Prod is a very silly sod, he needs a telescope to find his rod!" Krait sang loudly and tunefully.

It had just formed in her mind and it seemed like a good idea to get the pimp's attention.

She got it.

The big, blustering bully of a man came roaring out of a house. He looked at Krait and sneered.

"Well, you're fucking well pretty enough to bring in a few sickles" he said "You're gornter work for me now, bitch, and I'll only beat you a little for yer rudeness."

"Oh yes, that's how I know you have no manhood worth speaking about" said Krait "Because real men don't beat on little girls and women, they have big enough ones to pick on someone their own size. No, I don't think so" as he went to grab her.

He found it a little hard with a hand transfigured into liquorice laces. He yelped.

"You are a bully, a law breaker, a pervert and what's more I don't like you" said Krait and let fly.

The jarvey – Krait chose the form on account of the language – still with liquorice paws and apparently made partly from rubber bounced up and down the street nicely several times, howling with pain and outrage, then hung suspended in mid air by one back paw and cycled through a weird selection of animals. Then he returned to human form and Krait began changing his clothing to female attire of the gaudiest and blowsiest varieties, absently casting _langlock_ to stop the oaths.

"Hmmmm" she said "And I know EXACTLY what to do with you for keeps!"

And then he was female, a slightly chunky female with outrageously large breasts flowing into the skimpy costume he was dressed in. Krait dropped him to the floor.

"Have to change your name to Degora" she said cheerfully. "Have fun taking over Metella's clients, creep!"

Lucius applauded politely.

The children were crying with laughter.

"He'll hate that worse than ANYTHING!" said Lois fiercely.

"Cheap looking tart like him – her – will have to work for about fifty years to find enough money to get any curse breaker good enough to undo a transfiguration of Krait's" said Lucius cheerfully.

"You mean it's permanent? And – and he's truly a woman now?" asked Lois.

"That, my child, is the nature of transfiguration. Ah well, we shall test you and you shall see if you will be learning in Rowan House or whether you're due a place in Hogwarts….have you ever done any magic spontaneously?"

"Oh yes sir, when I was younger but he beat me for it and that's when he said women don't" said Lois. "I hurt him bad when he shook me once, but he hurt me back so much worse I didn't dare concentrate on how I'd done it. And I set fire to him once too by mistake because he come into the room and I just woke up and I was scared."

"Well that sounds like a decent level of talent" said Lucius. "I'll run the tests as soon as you've had the chance to get rested and eat a few decent meals."

The upshot of which was that Lois was to join the children at Hogwarts, in their year, a year below her chronological age to help her catch up. She could always be given a remove later; even as Dumbledore had been thinking of giving Jade Snape a remove to the year above her chronological age, where most of her best friends were too; if she felt able to take OWLs this year instead of next.

And Meliandra and Gorbrin felt it was a job well jobbed!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Diagon Alley!

The street was full of children, harassed looking parents and the occasional pet, either family pets that had been brought or the new familiars of new school children. Gorbrin was glad he had asked for a nice quiet pet like a toad; Terence was no trouble at all, and if he needed to send a message, Erica's owl was there for both of them. Some people had tried to suggest that it was proof that he was only a second class Malfoy, not even given an owl: but Gorbrin knew differently.

His twin sisters and Bella were being escorted to get their kit this year; and they ran into plenty of people they knew, the Snapes with Mimi and Philip Burke, Alexander Yaxley with his mother and sisters, one of whom, Clem, was a particular friend of Erica's; and Jocelyn Malfoy of course.

Philip Burke was covertly chatting to another boy in the cauldron shop.

"I guess I don't have to worry about your parents seeing mine" he said "With dad in gaol and mum ill… how can they stop us being friends at school?"

"Because we both have big sisters" said the other boy dolefully.

"Oh Dimsie's a lot more reasonable than she was" Philip assured him.

"Priscilla isn't" said the other.

Gorbrin stuck his head round the corner and whispered,

"I say! Couldn't help hearing – if that's Priscilla Parkinson, plenty of us in the second are happy to head her off any time you know; nobody likes her."

The other boy blinked. His face was slightly lopsided, one cheekbone was out of true.

"Crumbs, are you the one she calls that awful travesty of a stuck up goblin whose mother opens her legs for Lucius Malfoy?" he said.

Gorbrin scowled.

"My mum is one of Lucius Malfoy's wives" he said "And if you take that same view as her I'll fight you, anywhere, any time, fists or wands."

"Oh I don't take any view until I've seen for myself" said the boy. "Anthony Parkinson" he thrust out a hand "Though I do incline to think that someone my sister loathes can't be all bad!"

That wrung a laugh from Gorbrin who shook his hand.

"Gorbrin Malfoy-Tobak" he replied "My twin sisters are in your year."

"Are they feisty?" asked Anthony.

"I'll say!" said Gorbrin.

"There y'go, Philip, we can ask if they'll be friends with us and it'll really piss off Priscilla; only if they weren't feisty, it'd upset them what she's going to say and you don't do that to girls. Except Priscilla. She doesn't really count as a girl, more as an area of natural disaster."

Gorbrin laughed again.

"Well they're over there….go chat" he suggested.

"If you're sure they can give as good as they get…. See my cheekbone? Priscilla did that to me for saying I wouldn't be in her gang when I went to school, and the parents wouldn't take me to St Mungo's because they'd have to admit to how I got it and it would make darling Prissy look bad. They thought it wouldn't show by the time we got to school but it does, most awfully."

"Dad could sort that in a trice" said Gorbrin "And so could Professor Snape. Why don't your parents just use the right spells?"

"Because they left school with four OWLs apiece, that's why" said Anthony bitterly.

"I could fix it for that matter" Bella turned up "I say you're having far too loud a private conversation, why don't you cast _muffliatus_?

"Because none of us have heard of it that's why, you precocious creature" said Philip "Tony, this is Bella Black, Narcissa Malfoy's baby sister."

"Less of the baby" said Bella gurning horribly "I still haven't decided if I'm going to make Gorbrin, Erica, Griselen and Genavka call me 'Auntie Bella'.

"Over your jinxed body young weevil" said Gorbrin "Do you think we lordly warts permit such things from first year babies?"

Bella regarded him thoughtfully.

"All right, that one WAS justified I suppose" she said. "look, you boys, us four girls and the three boys we know will take care of you and make sure this sister of yours doesn't make trouble. We're just BOUND to be in Slytherin us lot, so we hang together, right, and you join the MSHG and it'll be FINE!"

The MSHG having been explained to Anthony he readily agreed; it sounded fun!

Lucius and women hustled their little party on, leaving Severus explaining patiently to the parents of the one muggle-born child that the quality of the cauldron DID affect the potion but that there was no point investing in a pewter one until or unless he displayed a talent; since at lower levels in the school it made very little difference and was relatively unimportant unless the child in question was highly talented in any case in which case, in the third year, he Professor Snape would recommend to those parents of talented children that such a purchase be made.

"You don't after all buy a Stradivarius for a child who plays quite well" said Severus.

That made the point quite nicely.

Norman Whytely seemed a pleasant enough child at least, and was quite taken aback to discover the existence of elves in the person of Mimi.

Mimi muttered that much more of the excessive interest that she attracted and she would make glowing words above her head read 'yes I am a free elf, yes I am going to Hogwarts, get used to it'.

"Be patient" said Krait "Just show them by getting more OWLs than them. At least the muggleborn kid has an excuse to ask questions."

"I guess" said Mimi "But I feel like an exhibit in a menagerie. Oh crumbs, Ministry officials…. I suppose it's the length of stirrers again, Dad's about to go apoplectic."

"Your dad having a go at people's rather entertaining" said Philip.

"Yes; but I had a preview of his views when they proposed it" said Mimi. "It's not even law so I suppose they're doing a survey….. I can't wait for him to start asking them sweetly how a fourteen inch stirrer is going to manage in a cauldron four feet deep like he uses to brew the years' supply of Pepperup potion and mum-Krait stores the babes in when she's teaching."

"What?" said Philip.

"Well it keeps them from wandering; she puts their toys in and leaves them playing. It's CLEANED before anyone brews anything you know!"

Lucius passed down the street nodding and bowing to the various people eager to greet him when the house elf came barrelling out of a shop and ran right into him.

Lucius regained his breath and the elf stared, bit his lip and started banging his head on the ground apologising.

"The apology is sufficient; surely you don't still feel and urge to self punish?" demanded Lucius "If you do, the ritual was faulty!"

The elf stopped, looked up at Lucius and his ears went up.

"Your blood!" he whispered awed.

"Never mind that" said Lucius testily "Do you feel an urge?"

"No, mightiest of masters!" said the elf "But I have shamed my Master by running into a master and if he finds out…."

"You can tell him I felt you had punished yourself quite adequately" said Lucius shortly "Who is this Master of yours?"

"My Master is Seleucas Cornfoot and his daughter is entering Hogwarts this year and so I must get everything for her!" said the elf.

"She is an invalid then?" said Lucius.

The elf shook his head.

"Oh no Sir! But Master does not see why he or she should have to trail up to town to get kit for Miss Venilia. So he sent me!"

"One might have thought he could have brought her up at the last minute and stayed in the Leaky Cauldron for a night or two and seen her onto the train as part of the same trip" said Lucius dryly. "Well I shall say no more of my negative opinion of Seleucas Cornfoot; I have a vague recollection of him at school and frankly I do not want to dwell on it. You had better get about your business."

The elf hustled off, and Lucius exchanged a few words with a man he knew vaguely, also with a child in tow.

"Never thought I'd see you championing goblins, Malfoy!" said the man.

"One lives and learns, Clearwater" said Lucius, hoping he remembered the name aright. A Ravenclaw family, near pure blooded, academically brilliant and not always socially apt if he recalled correctly. The boy with him must be a weevil.

"Tell me, Malfoy, have you heard it it's just a rumour or is there a HOUSE ELF to start this year?"

"A free elf starts this year, the second free elf to enter the school" said Lucius. "Polly Kirrin will be, I believe, in the third this year; she's a friend of my niece Lydia. Mimi Snape is Lydia's adoptive sister, and she'll be there too."

"Snape? As in old Snivellus, as dear sweet James Potter used to call him?"

"Ah yes, what an idiot James could be at times!" said Lucius, smiling gently and feeling murderous. "Used to call you 'Passwater' didn't he? He thought himself very clever at school, remarkable how well he turned out in the end. I see you waited a while to start a family."

"I married later than some of my generation" snapped Clearwater, flushing at Lucius' recollection of the nickname bestowed on him. "And Argus is our only child."

"Ah? But perhaps your good lady and yourself will manage a second family as Narcissa and I have, in addition to my Charlotte's children and my adoptive children" said Lucius. "Your boy will be in with Griselen and Genavka here, and Bella, Narcissa's sister you know."

Clearwater paled.

"But… Bella Black? As in…."

"I would ask you to be discreet in what you say, Clearwater" said Lucius warningly "There was an….accident. Bella returned to childhood and knows very little of any previous life she may have had. We want to keep it that way until she is older and able to cope with the whole truth. If she finds out through your agency I will not be pleased" he was still smiling but there was menace in the smile. Clearwater swallowed.

"Oh quite" he said.

"Why does Hogwarts have to take goblins and house elves now?" demanded the boy Argus.

"Why should it not?" said Lucius "If they are capable of accepting its teachings?"

The best way to meet the questions of a Ravenclaw – or probable prospective Ravenclaw – was with another question. It kept them quiet for hours puzzling on every implication of it.

Gorbrin and Erica had meanwhile wandered off to a Goblin with a vending tray selling prophesy randomisers to do Divination homework.

"Now that's a really neat idea" said Gorbrin "I'm hopeless at Divination and I'm not that great at making stuff up either, not that Madam Spikenard doesn't raise an eyebrow at anyway."

"Well if you will make prophesies that Odessa are going to send flocks of pigeons through magical gates to bury the castle in guano what do you expect?" said Erica. "Hoards of werewolves is believable but flocks of pigeons? That's just silly."

"Buy a randomiser then and solve your problems?" said the goblin vendor hopefully "Look, you turn the handle and it spins the wheels and gives you a starting sentence to write more about – we have here 'utterly despairing muggles', you could turn that into a paragraph about muggles learning about magic and despairing because they can't do it, or the rise of Muggle baiting or anything like that!"

"It's brilliant" said Gorbrin. "We'll have one; and if they're good the weevils can use it too."

"How many combinations are there?" said Erica.

"About a million" said the Goblin "One hundred words on each wheel. O' course they won't always be fortuitous combinations but with a bit o' practice you can get a real buzz outa interpreting them!"

"Excellent" said Erica "My brother and I will share one then."

"Brother? Beg PARDON Miss Malfoy, Mr Malfoy, didn't know with the red hair."

"Yes, the kidnappers who took the wrong kid thought the same" said Erica dryly. "Some of us look like out mothers."

Gorbrin was playing with his new purchase.

"'Thoroughly nasty werewolves' well that's an accurate description of German ones anyway….'perfectly putrid pixies' what a nice piece of alliteration….this is great just for fun even if we don't use it for homework!" he ducked as a child whizzed overhead on a broom and crashed noisily into a stack of cauldrons.

"I say, isn't flying on brooms restricted here if you're not catching escaped snitches like cousin Jade and Uncle Severus did?" remarked Erica, mildly.

"It is" said the randomiser vendor. "Daft brat!"

Silvester Crouch-Jones, a fellow Wart, was running over to the girl.

"Are you all right?" he demanded.

She nodded, and he boxed her ears soundly.

"My sister" he said to the Malfoys. "Richmaya."

"We all suffer from them" said Gorbrin gravely.

Griselen pulled a face and Genavka stuck out a tongue.

Richmaya winked at them.

It was another friendship made!

Willow Prince-Black was serving shop in Ollivanders to find wands for people and the turnover was brisk as a child would come in, Willow would glance at them and be handing them a wand before they could even say 'hello'.

Some parents wanted their child to try other wands, and Willow would shrug, sigh and comply remarking that there weren't any better but she supposed they had to see for themselves.

The child invariably ended up with the one Willow had matched him or her to.

Most people stopped to stroke the two silky black puppies in a basket; and very few realised that they were Willow's babies in a more convenient form; and into which they were inclined to spontaneously change anyway. She put them back into human form, rather forcefully, when it was time to feed them. Puppies have sharper teeth than humans even when they only have a few.

The Malfoys stayed with the Snapes and the Casimir Malfoys for a couple of days before the express was due; for one thing it was easier than going back to Wiltshire and for another it was convivial. Both Abraxus and Myrtle and David and Ellie invited them to tea, and imparted the glad news that each couple was anticipating parenthood. And Lucius had the strange-feeling opportunity to see Alastor Moody as a family man with his step children Salazar and Rose and his sons Horace and baby Alastor..

"I'm going to wait a couple of years and try again for another little girl" said Abigail "I love Rose as if she was my own but I'd like a girl for myself! Emmeline is swearing never again, still, but I expect she'll want a brother or sister for Martel, us being sisters has made so much difference."

Abigail's sister Emmeline had married Martin Umbridge shortly after leaving school; being together fighting Voldemort had given them a closeness nobody out of the MSHG could really appreciate; their Martel was just months younger than Alastor and Abigail's Horace, and though they were as indifferent to each other now as toddlers usually were to each other, the sisters hoped they would grow up as friends as well as cousins and have each other almost like siblings at Hogwarts in due course. Martel was almost mid way between Horace and small Alastor, but it would be in Horace's year that he would go to school.

It was good to see friends again and listen to the older ones' plans for the next new year, thought Gorbrin, though he missed Meliandra!

Lionel Dell felt very self conscious of the Head of House badge he was wearing as he stood to see people onto the train. It was exciting to be made Head Boy of Slytherin when he was still only in the Lower Sixth; David Fraser must have felt like this! He knew Tamsin Clintock felt the same, having heard from her that she was Head Girl of Hufflepuff. He had seen the Head of Gryffindor, Jasmine Spikenard board characteristically promptly and wondered who would be head of Ravenclaw who might be a little less boring than most.

The Gryffs had three new lower sixth prefects not two because of Alice Trumball's leaving to marry Rubeus – Lionel and the rest of his bloodgroup now thought of Hagrid as Rubeus – and Garjala Gan Golgo was the extra one, he had heard. Garjala's promotion had been, he suspected, along the lines of 'set a thief to catch a thief'; not that Garjala's honesty was in question, despite his own earlier mistaken beliefs about goblins, but her talent for mischief would have been legendary had not the Junior and Mini Marauders managed each group to surpass it with their exploits. Especially the Mini Marauders. They were going to have to rename themselves; the Junior Marauders were now the senior group of Marauders in the school! Lionel had suggested to Lynx Black-Weasley that the Prowling Marauders suited her lot and the Mad Marauders her juniors and Lynx had grinned and said the latter was certainly apt!

The new ones milled about a bit and had to be sent through firmly, only one muggle-born boy this year but in need of being firmly shown the way; and of course the Rowan House crowd. This year they were to be Hatted by the sorting Hat to see that they started the term in the right house; it was all very well to send over the brightest but it was better to leave it entirely to the Sorting Hat. It was wise enough to give those with the chance of scraping by the benefit of the doubt; and might place those who had expected to go to Hogwarts where they would be happier and achieve better grades in a school requiring less magical excellence. Indeed, Rowan House required no magical expertise at all, though squibs and those of low talent would be developed as far as they could go. Though the building was in London, the Rowan crowd were still encouraged to think of themselves as a division of Hogwarts, for the uniform was the same but with a red and light green tie and colour band around the sweater, added magically after they were sorted.

That would certainly suit the girl with green hair and creamy skin.

"Fey?" asked Lionel.

"Oh no, I'm a wood nymph" said the girl "Sylvia Birch is my name; I'm for Rowan House as a day pupil. Muggles are so fascinating to watch, aren't they? I watch them from my tree in Kensington Park. Professor Fraser suggested I should go to Rowan House, and mother and I showed them a dead oak that had old coins in the base of it from when it was planted. Professor Fraser bought the wood from the oak to make furniture with as a memorial to it, isn't that nice? I can't go to Hogwarts however good I am, 'cos I have to be back with my tree every day, but it'll be fun to meet other people!"

She departed still bubbling onto the train and Lionel wondered how she managed not to talk to random people when she was merged with her tree.

Perhaps it only came over as wind in the branches.

David Fraser joined Lionel.

"Lionel! I have a mixed bag this year!" he said "I don't think any of them will Hat to Hogwarts, at least not initially; three might have enough talent but there are other factors. Like one is a wood nymph."

"On the train safely" said Lionel.

"Good. She's a friendly little thing" said David. "Then there's Jack Clements; if he does come through, I wish you'll keep an eye on him. He's rude, cynical and bullying but he has a backgound that marks him in need of gentle treatment for it. His parents were tortured to death by deatheaters – both were muggle born - then he was….raised….for a year by the Goyles before being dumped on his nearest muggle relatives. The Goyles thought the idea of what he might do was very funny."

"Poor little bastard" said Lionel "I bet he's a small monster! Yes I'll certainly keep an eye out on him if he Hats to Hogwarts."

"There's a couple of goblin girls from Birmingham; I'm not sure if either has enough talent but the Hat will" said David "And there's Mungo. Poor kid, I want Severus to look at him and see if his condition is Lycanthropy or more akin to Rakshasa."

"Sounds intriguing."

"Kid was knocking around the alleys; I'm paying for him whatever happens. His mother was a bitch; and I mean that literally. Rather like little Nell Pettigrew, seems as though he had an unregistered animagus as a sire. I checked; it wasn't Sirius. Besides, Sirius has a good alibi for the time, he was still in Azkaban. Might have been a foreigner of course. Anyway, he has some talent but I'm not really qualified to see how much. I found him as I was collecting a protégé of Ulric Rolf; he contacted me when this muggle kid dragged her mum through the wall into Obscura Alley to escape kids who were taunting them. Seems the girls of the family have been whores for several generations and don't know any different; but young Kelly wants different. Ulric's taking care of them; I fancy he's going to marry Sharon – the mother – and adopt Kelly. Sometimes I wonder how I found time to get married!"

Lionel laughed.

He had been at the wedding of course and strongly suspected that Ellie would not have let anything get in the way of marrying her David!

The Snapes and Malfoys and Konals and wards arrived at that moment, jostling and laughing, decanted from Severus' minibus hearse – he had not bothered to alter the décor his children found so amusing – and started lining up to go through the barrier.

Their arrival coincided with that of Heather Burns and the Thomas children from their council house estate; and the usual bullies followed taunting, with new members of the gang.

One of the new members seemed to be going along with the others rather than joining in. He was overweight, which was a shame, because his skin was perfect, his hair pale white gold and his eyes a smoky lavender.

"Dad" said Gorbrin "Is he a Malfoy?"

Lucius did a quick bit of surreptitious wand waving.

"Yes" he said.

"He looks miserable" said Erica.

"Hey people, Snapes, Malfoys and others" said Gorbrin tensely "Rumble! Deal with those muggles while we steal the Malfoy boy!"

"Heh, RUMBLE!" shouted Jade and flung herself onto the biggest boy she could see.

It was the start of a nice little free-for-all.

Lionel was saying to a Station Master

"I know it's a bit unseemly, but when these council house brats WILL rag the chaps what can you expect the chaps to do? We've some scholarship pupils from their estate and these bullies won't leave them alone, so our chaps close ranks you know. We're not snobs like those types are inverse snobs. Ouch, I don't think an elbow THERE did that big fellow much good….. I never fight girls. They fight dirty and they use their teeth. Nothing chivalric about it, sheer cowardice. Shall I get a bucket of water or do you think the oiks are routed?"

"Well it's nice to know your posh ones support the free kids, but it do make a bit of a row" said the Station Master. If it had been between two comprehensive schools he would have called the police, but the posh school had such nicely spoken children, and the council house kids were plainly causing great provocation.

"I'm hoping that the interlopers might learn and give up" said Lionel. "Look, they've had enough; they're breaking and running. Bullies are always cowards. Six of them to rag three is fine odds but not when there's backup."

"I thought there were seven of them"

"Well there's no unconscious body so happen it was just six" laughed Lionel "Maybe there was an incidental child going elsewhere when you counted."

"That'll be it" said the Station Master.

Ian Pender found himself being dragged towards – THROUGH – a wall by two children, one of them a rum looking kid with long hands and feet, quite small, and with a sharp featured face that put him in mind of the goblins on 'Labyrinth'. He was on a train platform with a big red engine and then a tall man with hair his own colour and piercing grey eyes dressed in a black….well, robe was the only way to describe it, was bending over towards him.

"Are you my uncle or something?" Ian blurted out.

"Or something almost certainly" said Lucius sardonically "My dear boy you did NOT look at home with those common little er, Chavs."

Ian shrugged.

"If you go along with them they don't beat on you. I have enough problems without being beaten up by them as well." He said.

"Tell me your name and your life history."

"My name is Ian Pender and me and my siblings are orphans. Our father was charming sober but a devil when drunk and he killed our mother in a drunken rage, and he was drunk in court when he tried to get at the judge and split his head open on the courtroom floor. We got fostered; and where James, Timothy and Penny are I don't know, they scattered us around good. Penny's only five, she's going to be so scared! Still at least James and Timmy aren't anywhere near Deshawn Turner."

"Who or what is this Deshawn Turner?"

"If I tell you, you won't believe me. He's black so he can't possibly do any wrong" said Ian bitterly "Positive discrimination you know."

Lucius looked confused.

"Black? Of the Black family? Or negroid in appearance?"

"Negroid… I don't know any Black family. But you know how you can only get a house quickly if you're a black lesbian with minority interests… to make sure no-one's accused of racism."

"It sounds extraordinary to me; I think our parallel world works differently. Here racism directs towards those of different race, like my adoptive son Gorbrin here, not to those humans of different hair, skin or eye colour."

"Well I've never seen no-one – ANYone, their habits get to one – like him before. I only know about white, black and Asian racism."

"What has this person done then that his skin colour protects him from?"

"He's another fosterling in the same house; he's sixteen. He – he…" Ian flushed and looked as though he was about to cry.

"Shall I use magic and read it from your mind?" said Lucius, gently. Ian nodded, scarlet with shame.

The violent buggery that Lucius saw in the child's thoughts made him angry; but he did not show it.

"This Deshawn Turner is scum" he said "And he will NOT be permitted to get away with treating my ….let's say nephew….like this. Erica, go and ask Ross Tuthill to use his amazing skill with muggle computers to find out what relation this Pender senior was to me when he has a chance to go over to Archie Trumball's; I will take Ian home now and sort things out with the authorities. You, Ian, and your siblings will be my sons and daughter; and it will be all right from now on. You will go to school with the others once you have had the chance for me to heal you and be reunited with the rest. You may call me 'Lucius' or 'dad' as you choose, you need not make up your mind immediately and can always change it."

"He's just about the best dad anyone could have – even though my own was ace too when he was alive" said Gorbrin. "My mum is one of his wives, and he just adopted us wholesale, all eight of us!"

"Oh well, it made another quidditch team" said Lucius, ruffling Gorbrin's hair. "Up you hop on the train, son; here comes Lionel it's about to go. Ian and I are off back to Orme Court pro tem."

"See you at school later Ian!" said Gorbrin, thrusting out a hand. Ian shook it, quite bemused.

Rather a lot had happened unexpectedly since he had reluctantly tagged on with the bullies to rag the posh kids to prove he was not posh.

Lucius had some ideas.

First he had to establish a bona fides as the boy's uncle – easier than wholesale confundments – and that Casimir could do easily enough. Casimir was more than willing as Ian sat and stared about the big comfortable room and absently picked up Avice and Alienora to cuddle. They were of an age with his little sister and suddenly he was crying.

Four little arms comforted him; and Lucius laid a kindly hand on his shoulder and now, in private, placed what looked awfully like a wand on his lower back so that all the pain just stopped!

"We shall find her one way or another" said Lucius. "All I need is the address where you were living and the name of the social worker who dealt with the case. I can manipulate muggles of that sort quite easily."

Ian believed him!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Lucius left Ian with his uncle Casimir and motherly Wendy while he went muggle-confunding.

Registering himself as the children's uncle and having court orders to grant him custody of all was child's play; and he went to the foster house where Ian was staying ostensibly for the boy's possessions – though he would want his own things anyway – and actually to see Deshawn Turner. He had already made certain alterations in the records concerning the youth and now he confronted him.

Turner was a sneering type, as full of apparent machismo as an egg was of meat; and perhaps it was to cover his predilections to hide what was unacceptable to street culture.

"You buggered my nephew" said Lucius mildly "I strongly disapprove of that."

"So? What yer gonna do? I'll deny it, and tel 'em yer racist yer honky git" said Turner in the vowels of Essex.

Lucius searched his thoughts for any kind of remorse or compassion and found none. He got out his wand.

"Wot, yer finkin' you can spank me wiv that poofy fing?"

Lucius smiled and aimed the spell. Turner yelped as the transfiguration started to take place.

Krait had some good ideas at times.

"You are now a girl called er, Lashawna" said Lucius equably "And everyone except you believes that you always have been. YOU will know because you deserve to be punished for what you did. If you ever feel sorry – truly sorry – send a telegram to Lucius Malfoy, Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire. It will find me, and when you apologise to my nephew – now my adopted son – Ian, I may relent. If you fancy boys anyway you may even find it more comfortable after you get used to it. Don't bother to try to complain; who's going to believe you?"

"But….but it's impossible!" cried Lashawna Turner.

Lucius smiled.

"And that's how I can get away with it" he said.

Technically it was totally thoroughly illegal to perform such radical magic on a muggle; but Lucius did not care. And this would mean no other little boy was at risk from the big bully.

He had every right to be using his wand to confund people after all to acquire his flesh and blood; and Ian appeared to have been swallowed by that blasted electricity in this neighbourhood too!

Persuading the other inhabitants of the house that Lashawna had always been a girl was simple enough; and then a mass confundment on the social services involved and school was not as deep but would be reinforced by the boy being a girl.

Alastor Moody turned up with a quiet and well controlled 'poc'.

"What the hell are you doing, Lucius, with all this mass confunding? Did muggles see your carriage?"

Lucius regarded him thoughtfully. Alastor the family man was a sight more flexible than Alastor the paranoid auror.

"What would you do, Alastor, of you found a youth almost a man was buggering Salazar?" he asked.

"I'd jinx him into a ball and wring his ruddy neck of course!" said Alastor "Why?"

Lucius told him.

Alastor grunted a few times.

"And you said you'd put him back if he begged the boy's pardon? Well, I suppose that's not really muggle baiting, his fate is in his own hands. Don't push too far Lucius; I'm not going to take this any further but don't take liberties as a matter of course."

"Thanks Alastor; I thought you'd understand" said Lucius.

Collecting up the other three was even easier; all he had to do was present his court order.

Foster homes were used to children arriving or leaving at the drop of a hat, regardless of the wishes and welfare of the children. The foster mother who had care of James, the next one down, actually praised Lucius for taking them all on and keeping one family at least from being split.

"I said we'd have two now and take the other two when the older ones we foster move on, but no, of course not" she said "It wasn't according to the lottery they use called 'in the child's interest'."

Lucius decided to keep half an eye on her; she seemed sensible!

James was a quiet, pedantic little boy, as slender as any Malfoy, and Lucius knew that Ian had only eaten for comfort and to try to make himself unattractive to the Turner boy. It would soon melt off; especially with a few slimming spells. Timothy was mouthy; he had not been happy, being beaten up for his posh accent. Their mother seemed to have been a middle class girl charmed by their father from what the boys said and they had learned received English interpreted by the uneducated as 'posh'.

Penny was considered a worrying child by her foster mother because she never spoke and hardly ate enough to stay alive. The doctor said she was depressed, and had given her pills which just made her sleep.

The dull-eyed, inanimate child Lucius led out by the hand became a sparkling bundle at the sight of two of her brothers, throwing herself on them and hugging and kissing them, a transformation that amazed the foster mother who followed then to the car where James and Timothy were.

"There now!" she said "She seems to know those boys!"

"Naturally" said Lucius "They are two of her three brothers."

"She has brothers? Well they never told me that. I only ever have girls anyways" said the woman. "Well, well, fancy that!"

Lucius did NOT fancy that in any way shape or form; he thought the muggle way of dealing with orphans and children of criminals was quite as aberrant as the total lack of facilities in the wizarding world.

And then he was whisking all four back to Malfoy Manor to put some stability into their poor shaken little lives.

Back on the express, Lionel, Tamsin, Jasmine and the Head of Ravenclaw, Amiya Green – no relation to Mary-Anne – were waiting perforce outside the prefects' carriage while voting was under way for the Head of School.

They whiled away time with ices off Ethel Portree's cart.

"Well I told my lot I didn't want that much responsibility" said Tamsin, making inroads into her walnut and sweet birch ice with maple syrup.

"So did I" said Amiya Green "I'm serious about chanting and music in magic and all my free time is taken up with pleasing Professor Snape – oy, Dell, put your eyebrow down you smutty article!"

Lionel grinned.

"How could I pass up a straight line like that? I have to say I was just too gobsmacked to be head of house to think through the implications. It WOULD be hard work, but how rewarding to be able to give back to the school all that one has been given."

"I hadn't thought it through either" said Jasmine. "I do see what you mean, Dell; but it's a bit frightening to have that much responsibility!"

"It's I suppose a taste – as being head of house is too – to see if we step up to the mark and grasp the responsibility and make ourselves face the fear of how we can, each one of us, influence for good or bad the rest of the school lives of some of the juniors" said Lionel.

"DELL! Do you HAVE to be so scary?" said Jasmine.

"What's wrong? So long as you look at a problem and say to yourself 'now how would – insert name of favourite hero – deal with this, can you really go far wrong? The thing is to TRY hard" said Lionel. "My whole school career was turned around by David Fraser you know; when he turned me into a woodlouse because I got flattered by the Durmstrang crew. I'd been racist unthinkingly, and a bit of a bully because of it and he took the trouble to find out what had caused it and to help me to overcome my unpleasant side. He gave me self respect and new friends; and it ultimately led to Ross Tuthill doing well too once we were talking and became friends. As head boy of Slytherin at least, whoever is head of the school, I owe it to Fraser to pass that on and do my damnedest for the kids I have some care of."

"That's a bit heavy for me" said Jasmine "Oh, I'll help them out and try to keep order and so on but frankly this 'building or blighting a whole life' business is a bit….well, it makes me uncomfortable."

"I overheard Professor Flitwick chatting to Madam McGonagall in the secondhand bookshop in the holidays" said Amiya "He wondered that Pris Lockhart or Crispin D'aubrey hadn't been chosen; and McGonagall said that Crispin had enough to do to get through NEWTs as he's less talented than some and Pris Lockhart might have to go haring off to some foreign country – I didn't understand that – and was under too much strain worrying about someone called Victor. Wasn't there a boy called Victor who left in the fourth, some German kid?"

"He was a prince of a small muggle country" said Jasmine "And ODESSA were being a problem…so I was third choice?"

"No, McGonagall didn't say that, if you'll let me finish" said Amiya "She said they were two of about half a dozen that were under consideration in both sixths but that she was hoping that it would give you a taste of ambition and help you to raise your game. That was all."

"And the other three were Colin Weasley, Callum Prince and Persis Beck I wager" said Lionel. "Tough competition to be chosen from, Jasmine; reckon Madam McGonagall's got every faith in you that you can step up to the mark. We've had a Gryffindor Head of School for four years running now; she must reckon you rate highly if there's a good chance of that carrying on."

Jasmine looked aghast.

"I don't WANT to be head of school!" she said.

"Well if you're chosen, you'll have to be" said Lionel "And the rest of us will back you to the hilt of course! I…..WHAT THE DEUCE?" the train had screeched to a halt. "Oh no, not again" Lionel groaned "Come on people, up the front and see what's happened."

What had happened was that a man had flagged down the train; and a small girl was busy embarking.

Lionel was furious.

"Excuse me, was this by prior arrangement with Professor Dumbledore?" he asked the man, who regarded him with a sneer.

"Why ever would I bother to make arrangements with Dumbledore? The line goes past our lands. There's no reason my little girl should have to go to London to catch the train."

"There's the one reason called having the courtesy to do things the way everyone else does" said Lionel grimly. "This WILL be reported to PROFESSOR Dumbledore and if it happens again I suspect he will ask you to withdraw your child as a troublesome influence."

"Isn't it allowed then?" said the little girl "Daddy said it would be all right."

"My dear child, if everyone was allowed to stop the train willy nilly, then it would spend half its time starting and stopping; and by so upsetting its schedule it might cause trouble by getting mixed up – possibly fatally – with the muggle rail system" said Dell in his best Malfoy type voice.

The child frowned in thought.

"Dear me, that does seem a bit of a problem" she said "I can see why the rule is made then, not just to make it awkward for people, we'd better not do it again, daddy. Besides, I want to see Diagon Alley for myself."

"Did you not?" demanded Lionel.

"No, daddy sent Rikky – our elf – for all my stuff. It upsets him having to leave his researches you see. He wants to get back to them now. Bye bye, daddy, see you at Yule" she waved and the man strode thankfully off.

Lionel scowled at his back. He was definitely going to talk to Professor Dumbledore about HIM.

"What's your name, weevil?" he said.

"Venilia Cornfoot. Why did you call me weevil?"

"It's what all first years are called" said Lionel. "Come on; as you're here you'd better come and meet some half decent weevils" and he led her to the coach where Bella Black and cronies were ensconced.

"Venilia Cornfoot" he said "Seems to have a sense of fairness, and she's heard what I think of her dad stopping the train to let her on so don't give it to her again; and if she's got old fashioned racist views I think she's amenable to logic rather than being jumped on."

"Not like that Jack Clements fellow" giggled Bella "He's under the seat two carriages back if you want to rescue him."

Lionel sighed.

Looking out for Clements might prove hard.

He took a deep breath.

"I'm going to tell you kids something because I know you're probably all decent types" he said "Fraser told me; some of you know Fraser and know how thoroughly decent he is…." And he explained about Jack Clements.

"Crumbs!" said Bella "I guess that almost makes him brainwashed the way Lucius and Narcissa were…we'll be tolerant, won't we, bugs?"

There were murmurs of assent from the others.

"But we won't take any shit from him!" squeaked Mimi.

"Now he's learned that he can't bully it's a good start" said Lionel "And it may take some years; even with set ideas over lesser incidents than that it can take a while to straighten a kid out. But if you lot will back me in the two years I have left as head of Slytherin, and back whoever succeeds me, we might go a long way."

"We're with you, Dell!" said Bella "Mind, I like the way you assume we'll be Slythers!"

"IS there another house?" grinned Lionel.

"I think I'll be Ravenclaw" said Venilia.

"Well, you'll still back me in class, whatever house he's in, on a worthy cause, won't you?" said Lionel.

Venilia considered.

"Yes I will – Dell, wasn't it?"

"Yes. Thank you Miss Cornfoot" said Lionel.

Jack Clements was locked together with several jinxes and tentacles growing from every visible part of flesh that seemed to be tied in knots.

"Crumbs!" said Lionel "Someone got creative, I've never seen the jellied furnunculus curse allied with a knot-tying charm before. Half a mo, young Clements and we'll have you all sorted out."

Clements started swearing as his mouth was freer to move and Lionel absently saponified it.

"Language like that in civilised company is not acceptable" he said. "And any prefect is going to either fill your mouth with soap or glue your tongue to the roof of your mouth; or set you a ghastly long impot. Prefects can only set up to ten repetitions, but that CAN be ten reps of a long poem, or if you ever use words like that in front of me again, I might consider one rep that's copying a whole dickker to show you the richness of the language without recourse to crudity. If your own set don't mind and you swear in front of each other, and only in front of each other that's up to you, but don't get heard. WHAT have they done to your legs….they asked me to rescue you by the way, and if the soap's worn off I'd like your side; I didn't catch them at it and can only infer who did it but if you've a tale of unfairness I'll take it up with the main suspects."

"They're ruddy elf and Gobbo lovers" growled Clements.

"Yes, and they also get on fine with the muggle born such as your parents were" said Lionel "Even Bella Black who is pure blood and from one of the oldest wizarding families in Britain."

"Bella Black Lestrange?" Clements looked terrified. "I've heard her mentioned….but she'd be old! Forty or something!"

"No, just Black…. Lestrange is an old name too, we haven't got any in school at the moment" said Lionel. "Bella's a distant cousin of mine, I've known her since she was a little girl, she's straight as a die and fair. You don't have to push your weight around you know, Jack; you can get what you want by asking nicely. People are supposed to help each other out and make friends, that's what this trip is for to give people the chance to meet each other informally."

"Hah, she's really going to want to be friends after the row we had!"

"Why shouldn't she? You had a row. You were rude about her and her friends; you had disapproval rather, er, forcefully shown to you" said Lionel. "If you wanted to say that you don't know anything about goblins or elves – because you don't apart from hearsay – she'd start over. I didn't know anything about goblins or muggles and I got well jinxed for saying unacceptable things. But I have brains in my head, ears on the side and eyes out front. I listened and I saw and I learned from my own experiences. You can too; or you can choose not to and be lonely and miserable. A lot of goblins can be loudmouthed, cocky and fond of their own cleverness; but that answers for a lot of Ravenclaws as well. And us Slythers for that matter. Elves can be downtrodden; but anyone who is tortured into submission will say black is white to avoid more pain and grief."

"HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW?"

"I know what I was told; your background. But that doesn't tell it all. Only you know it all. If you want to tell me, I'll listen and, if you want it, give advice on how to deal with it. Or just be an ear as you prefer. I know something about the Goyles; not a lot but enough to know I wouldn't want to spend twelve minutes with them let alone twelve months. I imagine the cruciatus curse was used freely."

"And you don't even know what it's LIKE throwing around the term so lightly!"

"Actually my personal friends and I applied for permission to take the cruciatus curse to help prepare us for the fight against the German deatheaters who call themselves ODESSA" said Lionel. "So yes, actually I do know. Some of us choose to take a harder path and stand by as protectors of the school. It's mostly the Marauders; but the group I belong to does too. I've helped kill Odessa men, werewolves; some of the people at this school, even some quite little ones, have been involved in some heavy stuff. You won't find it full of twee middle class curtain-twitchers who think it not quaite naice if you mention the terror and the agony and the fear you are going to lose the contents of your bowels. We're made of sterner stuff than that at Hogwarts. Those twin goblin girls, their elder brother, aged seven, not much older than you were, saw his father killed with Avada Kedavra and had to become man of the house. They have a high name by adoption but they've seen the elephant old boy. You've had it harder than most; but that doesn't mean we can't accept what it's done to you and try to help you move on, not by covering it up but by helping you to look at it piece by piece and overcome it. Then those bastards won't have won. If you become a racist bully who bites at anyone who comes near you, they will have won, won't they?"

"I don't know! Leave me alone!" Jack Clements was close to tears.

Lionel put a hand on his shoulder.

"Whether you're at Hogwarts or in Rowan, my door is always open, Professor Fraser will show you a way through if you're there" he said. "Sometimes, you know, crying is stronger than bottling up. Only the weak sneer at emotions apart from hate; because they're deficient in being unable to feel them. Homily over; leaving now" and he left the boy to it.

Once the first years were safely on the boat Lionel asked Polly to apparate him into the castle, knowing that the young house elf could do so easily; and he ran up to the Head's office.

"Lionel my boy…that was quick….you had help?"

"Yes sir; there are several things that came up and I thought as train prefect I should let you know. First off, Lucius has acquired another unknown Malfoy who was with the muggle bullies who follow Heather and co; I think he has that in hand, but the boy will be coming here in a few days. Lucius will tell you all about it I'm sure but forewarned with a slippery character like Uncle Lucius is always handy" he grinned, then sobered "And then there's the case of a Mr Cornfoot who thought it was all right to flag down the train to put his daughter on rather than take her to London; he sent his elf to shop for her too. I dumped the kid on Bella Black and co, because they're nice kids and hoped they'd try to turn her into a human being before the train journey ended; she's more amenable to logic, but she reminds me a bit of Fenella Fenwick, sir, all aplomb and – and Ravenclawishness. Kid of eleven didn't ought to be middle aged."

"No, quite; you did quite right, Lionel, and I'm proud of you. Those youngsters will do her no harm. Did you come into contact with a Jack Clements?"

"Yes; I unjinxed him and had a long talk – well, really I lectured him. He's a poor mixed up kid who could be strong if he'll accept the help. I set Bella and co to be nice to him."

"Isn't that rather a punishment?" joked Dumbledore. "Excellent work, Lionel; I fell fully justified in picking you over the upper sixth for head of house."

"I think we all kind of expected to have Ed Dinalt" said Lionel "It knocked me in a heap I can tell you when I got the badge! But I never asked my lot not to vote for me; because unless you're certain there's one who's better, I think it's an abrogation of responsibility. I mean, Hawke asked us not to, but he asked us to vote for Abraxus which meant almost the same thing, and if they were both in the running, it could have meant a terribly split school. And Myrtle too; they kind of were a triumvirate with Abraxus er, primum inter pares as you might say."

"As indeed you did" murmured Dumbledore "Yes, that was well reasoned. Did any of the others ask their prefects to not vote for them?"

"Yes; Tamsin because she didn't feel ready to lead more than the house and Amiya because her music and chanting will take too much time" said Lionel "And if I felt like that about my work I'd have asked for someone else to be head of house. And Jasmine was moaning about not wanting the heavy responsibility."

"And you don't mind?"

Lionel shrugged.

"The concept is frightening; I admit it. As I said, you can make or mar a kid's whole school life, maybe whole life-life if you let them down. But if you accept head of house, unless like Tam there's nobody better – Mary-Anne is too scatty, Tim's over sensitive and the upper sixth are dim – you accept the possibility of being voted in UNLESS there's a clear and present leader. Like Abraxus, like David Fraser and from all I've heard like Ginny Weasley and Draco Malfoy because Harry had a bit more on his plate with Voldemort than ruddy music exams. Sorry sir, that slipped out" he added.

"Oh David's used worse words in front of me than that when the situation warranted it" smiled Dumbledore. "I agree; and I hope that the rest of the prefects recognise what I recognised, and what you have confirmed for me that there IS a clear and present leader."

Lionel was not so modest as David.

"If they pick me I'll do my damnedest to live up to David Fraser" he said.

"Lionel my boy, I'd say you'd begun very well already" said Dumbledore "Now judging by the row, people are arriving; you should go and harry your Slytherin into some semblance of order."

"Yessir" said Lionel, bowing and taking his leave.

The houses were sorted and sat down when the boatload of weevils arrived, greeted more or less genially by the ghosts; which is to say more by the Fat Friar and Nearly Headless Nick and distinctly less by the Bloody Baron who had his reputation to keep up, though he did grunt in approval at the Malfoys in the party, including Griselen and Genavka.

Sir Edward was a firm believer in the concept that Malfoys went their own way and damn consequences or convention.

He also thawed a little when Bella Black blew him a kiss.

Bella was the first person under the hat.

"_**Good gracious me! You've been here before….but you're a happier child this time"**_ it remarked.

"_**Only I don't know anything about that and they're cagey about all that happened."**_

"_**That's probably as well….until you're a little older, child. You want Slytherin I see?"**_

"_**It's kind of traditional; besides, Slythers know how to have fun and still uphold the school"**_

"_**Ah, and that I am glad to say is a joyful change…**_Slytherin!" declared the Hat.

Bella danced over to the Slytherin table – now NEXT to the Gryffindors not far removed – and sat down to the cheers of the House especially her courtesy cousins.

Slytherin house ended up with those of Bella's cronies who expected to be there; Jocelyn, Alexander, Philip, Anthony, Griselen and Genavka and Mimi. They also had Terazhor, Kordach's son and Krezala, one of the goblins from Birmingham. The other goblin girl went to Rowan. Jack Clements was also Sorted into Slytherin, and looked nervously around the group as it grew of those who had jinxed him so thoroughly, being the main first year Slytherin contingent; but Bella smiled at him and said,

"We can start over you know, if you admit you were talking out of your hat and new school nerves got your tongue."

"Yeah, well, I suppose it wasn't smart to comment on something I know nothing about" said Jack "Reckon I felt I had to take one side or other and I wanted to avoid pure blood bullies."

"Oh, daddy had that when he was first up" said Mimi. "He had a muggle father and kinda felt it in those days. I'm adopted" she added. "Dad joined a bunch of Slytherin Bullies because it was better than being picked on. We don't start the picking, our gang, but we DO mean to finish it."

"Right" said Jack "And how long is it until you throw YOUR weights around?"

"We wouldn't half cop it from above if we tried" said Bella "Dell'd turn us unto pumpkins I should think! Possibly literally. Oh yes, racist remarks get you turned into a woodlouse, Madam Malfoy-Snape started that, why Woodlice I don't know but it's become traditional. It's handy having relatives at school 'cos they tip you the wink about that sort of thing. Like don't rag the sixth too much even if they're not prefects 'cos they have respect due to their advanced geriatric state. Crumbs, they don't have many Gryffs, do they?"

Gryffindor had eight new ones.

"We get the ones that might have been Gryffs if Slythers had still been rotters" said Mimi. "See, we have eleven!"

"Eight Huffers and ten Ravers" said Erica leaning over from the second. "And LOOK at those idiots on the Raver table making up to whassisface Jack Murray just because he's the great nephew of Eunice Murray of the Montrose Magpies."

"She's the one who asked for a faster snitch because the play was too slow wasn't she?" asked Philip Burke.

"Yes, posturing bimbo!" said Gorbrin. "Our Raver Murray looks like he likes posing too…heh heh, I wonder if the Ravers will break their RIGID and UNBREAKABLE custom over letting Weevils on the team if he's half as good as Auntie Eunice was!"

"He'll need to be very good to be better than Mei Chang as Seeker" said Meliandra "Any weevils here any good? If so, see Kate Rosier, she's captain of Quidditch as Mr Dell was called to higher duties."

Clem giggled.

"That sounds like he got killed covered with glory" she said.

"He probably will" said Meliandra seriously "He's that sort….like the zig-zag scar crew. Either that or he'll live covered in glory and be an irascible old headmaster and when he does die his portrait will harangue people about how it was in his young day when we were fighting Odessa."

There was much laughter and several people promptly jinxed Lionel to grow a long beard and whiskers.

Lionel looked startled for a moment, dislodged the spells with a flick of the hand and asked,

"What did I do?"

"We just wanted to see what you were going to look like in the portrait of you as a dead Headmaster" said Erica.

Lionel opened his mouth; shut it again; and turned to Melody Bloom, sitting beside him.

"Is it my imagination or do warts and weevils get stranger every year?"

"It's a surfeit of Malfoys" said Melody calmly "NONE of them are too tightly wrapped, even the half breed Snape ones."

There were rude noises from down the table from Jade, more or less on principle.

"Dead Headmaster? I haven't even left school yet" Lionel murmured, shaking his head. "Nutters. The lot of them, nutters."

Dumbledore banged on the table for silence.

"Well it's another new year, with new faces" he said "And I have to say another bunch of wise heads on young shoulders – such a silly phrase, you'd look ridiculous with your heads on your shoulders…. I DO beg your pardon Sir Nicholas" as Nearly Headless Nick muttered that SOME people whose heads rolled about had no choice "….but once again the choice of Head Boy is the only person truly capable, I believe, of stepping up to the mark in the same inimitable fashion that we have seen from the last few heads. The position of head boy – or girl of course – should go to the person with the initiative to see a problem and sort it out, or if he knows it is beyond him to go to an appropriate member of staff. Lionel Dell has come a very long way and has made himself responsible, in David Fraser's place for getting everyone safely on the train; he is a young man who says 'come with me' and people automatically follow."

"Yes" Tamsin murmured to Tim "When the train stopped, he said 'come on let's see what's happened' and we all went."

Dumbledore went on.

"Lionel has fought personal demons and overcome some hefty prejudices to become one of the fairest and objective young men I have the pleasure to know; and I know that as the previous head boys and girls have done, his office will be open to anyone with a problem, or just a matter they wish to discuss. We have our second elf starting this year and I know there are those of you who have struggled with coming to terms with the idea of any non humans at Hogwarts; Lionel will I'm sure listen to any prejudices anyone wishes to air and help those who hold them to understand the reasons for their feelings; and perhaps help overcome them. It is always of value to understand yourself; for if you do not, how can you understand how to tackle life? It is always important to strive to do better than before and I have no doubt that Lionel Dell will throw his heart into this job."

Lionel came to receive his badge and make a short speech.

"I read Professor Snape's book 'Blood magic, Love magic' in the holidays" he said "I thoroughly recommend it. An excellent read and not as dry and dusty as one might expect from a professor, though you may need a dictionary for the Snapisms, unless like me you've already incurred his wrath and looked most of them up. It's an excellent read because it pushes the point that Professor Dumbledore is also known to make, that there is no point in any effort without that you give your heart to it. You have to love to get on; love a cause, or your house or your school or an individual. But love that is selfish is no love. Love your house does not mean hate the others. We all make jokes about other houses; but jokes they should remain. Our school teaches us to get on together as well as giving us an academic education; and in still uncertain times with Odessa out there, we still need to work in harmony as we did against Voldemort. We all want our houses to do well at quidditch and for the general House Shield; but if there is a choice of house or school let the choice be for school; even as if there is a choice for self or general good, let us say pro bono publico."

"What does that mean?" said a Hufflepuff weevil rather louder than she had intended.

"It means that weevils appear to have little Latin" said Lionel dryly "It is 'for the public good', ie to benefit others. Rant over; come to me if you need help, and I'll try to fulfil the illustrious shoes into which I step to the best of my ability. Cheers."

"You are a horrid brat still" said Severus amicably.

"Wouldn't want to disappoint you sir" said Lionel grinning.

And the new term was well and truly under way!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Gorbin was wakened in the night by being shaken.

He sat up with a start to find Philip Burke at his bedside.

"Oh Malfoy, please can you come to Tony, he's crying himself sick over what his sister plans to do and wants him to help with!" said Philip.

"Sure" said Gorbrin, sliding out of bed and pulling on dressing gown and slippers to go to the first form dormitory.

Technically it was against the rules, but the prefects knew who was making trouble and who had genuine business. Sure enough, Anthony Parkinson had sobbed himself into a temperature and Jocelyn Malfoy and Alexander Yaxley were looking a bit helpless. Jack Clements was saying,

"Dell said that you don't have to let people bully you into doing things if you do they've won and you don't want her to win you prat. Come on, don't be a baby, we'll fight this fucking sister of yours."

"Watch the language, Clements, Dinalt never sleeps" said Gorbrin absently "And he's swallowed at least as many dictionaries as Professor Snape, in that family they wean them on thesauruses. Parkinson you poor prune, she can't MAKE you do anything, if your parents give in to her, we'll just take turns at inviting you home for the hols until she gives up or you grow bigger than her. Besides, you're going to join the MSHG aren't you, and learn to jinx bullies every which way to Sunday."

"What's that?" asked Clements.

"It was set up by Harry Potter and friends, including my big brother Draco, so I know all about it; it was code named the Muggle Studies Hobbies Group to sound boring to incipient deatheaters like Crabbe and Goyle and Nott….they're all dead I think….. and they got Hermione Granger to be all earnest about it to scare off ordinary oiks" said Gorbrin "It was for studying to fight Deatheaters better. And they used unconventional stuff too, and combined curses kinda exotically. And it was also to keep physically fit, 'cos the fitter you are the longer you can sustain spells; and the ones that have done it say you can resist the cruciatus curse better too, though I can't say I'm looking forward to trying that." He shuddered.

"How can you RESIST it? It tears you apart!" it was Jack crying now.

"You've had it done on you?" said Gorbrin.

"Yes, oh yes" Jack sobbed; and then he was telling them, the terror the confusion, six years old and believing what they told him to believe because it made the pain stop.

Tony was the first out of bed to go to Jack.

"Jack, that makes what my sister does trivial!" he said. "You're a ruddy hero to even be functioning!"

"He is" said Gorbrin "Jack, you ought to go to Professor Snape; he looks stern but he's really kind if you're in trouble, and then he can deep legilimens you and help you deal with it."

"Deal with what? The noise in here is comparable to erumpants mating " Professor Snape's voice cut in.

"Sir, do you know Jack Clement's background?" asked Gorbrin.

"I know something of it….ah, well now young Jack, I think I prescribe cocoa and marshmallow and a long talk for you. Do you want a friend with you?"

"I haven't got any friends" said Jack.

"Don't be a wanker" said Anthony "Any one of us will come."

The others nodded.

Severus sighed.

"Down to my rooms the lot of you; cocoa for seven coming up. If you're in too, Terazhor?"

"I wasn't quite liking to stick my oar in" said Terazhor "I don't know if they want me."

"Only if you don't eat all the marshmallows" said Jocelyn. "For goodness sake! If you'll pull alongside us we'll pull alongside you… daft to be one alone, right?"

"Merlin's beard I think you boys have managed something unique, a dormitory where everyone becomes friends by the first night" said Severus.

Sat on cushions in front of a roaring fire with marshmallows on sticks to cook them the boys waited while Severus delved into Jack's mind.

"Hmm, nasty" said Severus "You can be pleased that this was a bit of freelance work, no compulsions as set by Tom Marvolo Riddle himself….Voldemort to most people I prefer to remember his faintly ridiculous real name…yes, to a child the complications have been severe. Jack, I think the best thing for me to do is to dim the memories and let you make new ones; pull up the most positive times with your aunt and uncle to dwell on, not the times that you behaved badly to their bewilderment. When you are a few years older we shall lift these memories out into the Pensieve – a device for examining memories – and then you and I and any friends of your choice will walk through them – in a detached manner. It is like looking into the life of someone else almost and one may deal more easily with the baggage that one has accrued by observing from a more adult viewpoint and understanding better. As one day, Bella Black will see the memories of Bella Black Lestrange and see what turned a normal little girl into a monster. Her memory was removed to the age of three; but I will not remove the offensive memories from you, for one thing they are not as bad as Bella's; for another they have shaped the child. My wife often says 'that which does not kill us makes us stronger' – she had a horrendous childhood – and it is true. But only if we permit it. As Lionel said in his speech you have to throw your heart into it. If you will throw your heart into overcoming this terrible time we will I think all back you to succeed. Yes, all your friends nod….Jack, you do have friends and having shared this I think you will find them more loyal and supportive that you could ever imaging friends to be. You are no longer isolated. You have won; the Goyles have lost. Again. Krait used to regularly turn Gregory Goyle into a pig and I used to pretend not to notice….he was much better looking that way. I personally killed his father in the Battle for Hogwarts, though I had some highly illegal help from some third years….one of whom was last year's head boy. I believe Krait took pity on Gregory Goyle and turned his intellect as well as his body into that of a wild boar, so he may still be at large in the forest; and it is perhaps fortunate that it was the Goyle family who took you not the Crabbes, for vile as the Goyles were, they were at least unimaginative. With a bit more imagination you might have been irretrievably damaged. But you are not; Jack Clements is worth getting to know; for Jack to get to know himself instead of fearing to. You will learn, when the world seems to bite, to take refuge in biting sarcasm instead of biting back with spells; and direct your cleverness – you are clever, Jack – into constructive urges not destructive. Friendship will give you a solidity, a basis to hold on to. Now go back to bed the lot of you or my wife will want to know why you're all yawning in her class!"

"Sir can I ask a quick question off the record?" said Gorbrin.

"If it is quick" said Severus.

"Tony here is getting griped at by Parkinson, his sister to, so far as I can gather, do things to my sisters to get at me; what's best to do about her?"

"Splinching has always appealed to me" said Severus "A singularly single minded and stubborn young lady is Miss Parkinson without any concept of consequence, rather like a bee in a summerhouse that buts its head again and again on the window and stings anyone trying to rescue it from its own folly…. If you can manage to ignore her, boys, do so; answer with soft words her hard ones and treat her as mentally sick to be gently humoured with words and ignored by actions. Perhaps she may learn. Your sisters are well able to take care of themselves, Gorbrin; have you told Tony that?"

"No time sir; we got involved in what happened to Jack" said Gorbrin. "But they're remarkably resilient, Tony; just leave them to it, they'll use everything Draco taught them to jinx her into a pudding."

"They are good at it" said Jack "Don't forget what they did to me."

"There is that" said Tony "I never even heard of the jelly furnunculus curse before."

"With knots on" said Alexander.

"And wait til they come out with the bat bogey hex!" said Gorbrin.

"Away with the lot of you!" said Severus "Early start tomorrow for the MSHG, I expect you all to be there!"

"Yes sir!" they chorused!

Lionel was looking forward to the next two years, although it would be very busy! Lionel liked being busy, and though he wondered if he had bitten off more than he could chew taking seven NEWTs as well as being Head Boy he shrugged to himself and reflected that he could always drop one subject. Which one he was not sure; but he would see how it went. David after all had taken six NEWTs as well as being involved in the Triwizard contest, and several heavy rituals so surely he, Lionel, would manage! Potions was his weakest subject of course; and he had been delighted to have pulled an 'E' out of the bag at OWLs and to have negotiated with Severus to take it to NEWT level, having said, all unwittingly, the right thing when he explained that he felt that potioneering was more subtle than raw spells. For that level of understanding if not a basic talent Severus had been more than happy to stretch a point. Madam McGonagall accepted students with 'E' grades anyway, and so Lionel had wanted to take that; it went with Potions, Charms and DADA for if he wanted to be an Auror; even as Ancient Runes and History covered the skills one should use in the Quaestorium, also a career Lionel was toying with. As all these others and Arithmancy he had achieved 'O' grades at, following on with them was no problem. And Arithmancy helped so many subjects and was just plain fun too, even if Cynner Strong had more raw talent than he. She was taking five NEWTs; Callum was taking six, Melody four and the rest of the group in his year were on three. They were not so academically inclined as the main Bloodgroup but they had will and determination to fight evil and that was more important.

After all, Arthur Weasley, respected member of the Order of the Phoenix and high ranking ministry official had left school without any NEWTs having eloped with Molly to marry her before their eldest child was born.

Lionel thought it silly.

They could have had the baby at school, surely, like Willow had and Dione Parnassus- Snape – that was a shock that she was now Severus' mistress – and got their NEWTs. Still, times changed; people were stuffier back then, the Weasleys were even older than Lucius.

Now things were flexible enough for Severus to negotiate for his cousin Pete to take NEWTs after catching up informally, and Pete was to join their classes and study as a sixth former though he was some four years older than the rest. And Lionel was glad for him; Pete had helped him no end, working as a classroom assistant to Severus.

Pete's half brother Alexander Chang had visited a few times too; and was now working for Lucius on his newspaper as sub editor – a step up from being a mere reporter for wizarding wireless – as well as being apparently the lover of both Linda Ermin and Hilary Arbuckle, mothers of two more of Crassus Prince's discarded children. In fact both women were now pregnant and Madam Ermin was almost as snippy in the Library as Madam Pince had been, because she looked pretty unwell with it; and Lionel had quietly organised his group to help her out and do all the running about up and down shelves for her. As Callum was half brother to her Oliver she was more than happy to accept the help and thanked them gratefully. Hilary Arbuckle, heading the orphanage, was no less pregnant but she seemed to be taking it in her stride and supported her sister wife as best she could. The orphanage was now large enough that a new location had been considered – Melody Bloom knew at least half the deliberations that went on as ward to the Snapes and living in the orphanage for part of the holiday – but Krait had demurred on several grounds, one being convenience for herself to leave her children having a wizarding upbringing with the primary school teachers under Hilary and the other being the comfort to orphans in school knowing that their younger siblings were nearby, and the same comfort too to the younger ones. Consequently several medieval buildings across Britain scheduled for demolition as relocation costs or repair costs were too high for the owners and the road lobby wanted to put roads through them anyway found their way to add to the outworks of the castle.

It was an ideal and healthy location in which to rear children; and Alexander Chang would just have to apparate to work.

And as head boy, in a way, it was up to Lionel to take an interest in this, even if he was not nosy enough to do so anyway. Which he was.

He was also nosy enough to look in on the sounds of an indignation meeting by the weevils.

Somebody had cut up the text books – all the text books – of the Malfoy-Tobak twins.

Lionel walked in on the group.

"That's beyond tricks, that's nasty" he said. "Have you any idea who did it?"

"Yes, Dell" said Griselen. There was a long pause "We weren't about to sneak though" she added "We have to make it not worth the while to her – er, the cuprit, ourselves."

"I can mend a couple of those" said Lionel, casting _episkayo_ with some aplomb "But some are too bad…whose classes? Ah, Madam Malfoy, I suppose there was malice directed at her too, look, I'll go to the staffroom and tell the staff you've been targeted and ask them to let you share until Lucius sends you some more. At least you've got a dad who's richer than God; but really, this wanton destruction is a form of stealing. I suggest you tell your father who it is and have him present a bill to her father and threaten legal action: that might get her parents stopping it and without recourse to school authorities."

"Hit the dirty little beast where it hurts – in the pocket" said Genavka "Cool thought, Dell, we like it!"

"If it gets beyond what you can handle you can always come to me informally" said Dell "And I'll do what I can. Glad to see all you kids pulling as one; it's the best way to deal with bigger ones."

He was particularly pleased to see Jack Clements in there with the rest!

When he reported the matter, only semi-formally in the staff room, Severus beckoned him over and gave him a brief run down on what had happened over Jack.

"Your talk to him on the train made him think really hard; enabled me to add to that" he said "Thanks, Lionel; you did quite a David on that boy."

Lionel grinned, flushing.

"You couldn't give me a better compliment sir" he said.

The Weevils were enjoying their first day; flying first; and for the Slytherin, Philip Burke at least making a good showing on broom; and Kate Rosier scouting – with permission form Professor Lupin, whose class she was missing – to see if any were any good. Meliandra had already been tipped to play as beater with Kate, and was as proud as punch! Jade was still seeker, Lionel to play Keeper because he was flexible and there was a need for another chaser to join Ed and Gorbrin. And Philip was delighted to be chosen!

Jack Murray was throwing his weight around of course, bragging about his famous relative, and other relatives who had played for the Montrose Magpies; explaining how he was practically born on a broom and would of course be having his own as Professor Dumbledore would be made to see that the rule must be relaxed for someone of his talents.

As Francesca Longbottom, the new Ravenclaw head of games, had declared that the custom would NOT be relaxed in Ravenclaw, and Francesca was a stickler who was never to be moved on a point of law, it seemed unlikely that these boasts would come true.

Rumour had it that Francesca disliked the reputation Ravenclaw had for being stuck up and was glad of an excuse to leave out so self opinionated a boy anyway. Mei certainly applauded the decision to her cronies declaring that he was worse than everyone had expected a certain Amadeo Hero Lockhart to be until he arrived and proved to be Mad in all respects. Mad Lockhart just grinned.

Several of the new ones in Ravenclaw were good flyers.

"Well I should think when they DO start to play we'll be kissing goodbye to the cup for a few years" said Gorbrin gloomily to Ed at house practice later "So we better make this a good year while we have the chance. As well as Me-first Murray I see a girl I'd describe as quite as good as he is and a boy who's very nearly as good as me; and there's another couple of girls who are no slouches. They have a whole quidditch YEAR here; and as a class, they'll likely play better as a team too."

"Nicely and objectively analysed" said Ed, who was a realist and not about to call down the younger boy for defeatism. "Well, let's make this year count then; and hope we'll have a like group next year ourselves as we're NOT daft about using young talent. Crumbs, by the time Mei is head of games she'll have quite a pool to draw from!"

The name Me-first stuck to Jack Murray though.

School settled down happily; Priscilla received an owl on the second morning that made her look particularly sore; and Griselen leaned forward to say,

"In the real world, Parkinson, if you break it, you bought it. We'll give you the pile of scrap paper when our new ones arrive; you can be proud to do what you like with it then. Next time you destroy property we sneak you up. You're too old to act like a toddler you know. So we used the grown up solution; threats of legal action. Welcome to the real world, daddy's pet baby; now grow up and get a life!"

Parkinson boiled at being spoken to thus by a goblin and a younger child at that.

"And what's more" said Dimsie Burke "You can just leave off getting at my brother for being friends with yours; the kids can be friends with who they like even if it is a step down for a convict's son to associate with a mere Parkinson. YOUR dad and uncle only didn't go to Azkaban as deatheaters 'cos they were too cowardly to choose sides if picking on parents is the fashion around here. Like the kid said, grow up and get a life. You're the most boring kid I ever knew, and as stupid as a stump."

None of which made Priscilla Parkinson feel any more charitable towards anyone; but she was afraid enough of Lucius Malfoy carrying out his threat to take her father to court over damage to property to leave that petty meanness aside at least!

The next accident befell Meliandra.

The class were in Transfigurations and Meliandra was trying hard to turn her beetle into a button when she felt her clothing crawling with life.

She had transfigured all the buttons on her blouse into beetles and they got up and were crawling away and her shirt fell open. Meliandra gave a little cry of horror.

Hyacinth Greengrasse looked up.

"Huh, don't worry about it Bulstrode, you've got nothing there for anyone to look at anyway" she said "And when you do it'll be no more worth bothering than looking at your face."

"That was no' a verra ladylike comment" chid Madam McGonagall "Ye can write me lines, one hundred, on 'Manners Maketh Man' young Hyacinth. Wha' hae ye done, Meliandra?"

"My beetles – I mean my buttons have run away" said Meliandra, close to tears as her buttons took flight and headed for the window.

Gorbrin glanced over.

"Hold your shirt together a moment Mel" he said; and waved his wand as Meliandra obediently did so.

New buttons appeared and thread rapidly sewed them on.

"Weel noo Mr Malfoy, that's a fine piece of summoning beyont yer years" said McGonagall "Ah'm main impressed. Ten points tae Slytherin fer your kindness and skill. Meliandra my dear, your beetle appears to have escaped."

"I don't think I like beetles any more" said Meliandra "THANKS Gorbrin!"

Hyacinth was not popular with Meliandra's friends; and it has to be said that she produced some highly coloured farts for almost a week with the extent of the jinxing and also developed pimples across her nose that read 'cow' and the sound of mooing while she spoke.

The first were settling in well. Slytherin House's weevils were happy and united, an absolute first that earned them praise from their stern House Master; Krezala, the goblin girl from Birmingham, was inclined to be stand-offish and suspicious at first, defensively; but with other goblins in her house treated like everyone else, and even an elf, she started to join in more and even suggested a few enterprising ways of keeping people like Priscilla Parkinson under control by pretending that they could neither see nor hear her and had no recollection of her existence. It was hard not to answer back to comments the girl made but much more satisfying to see her look of baffled fury when she was taken no notice of at all, not merely studiously ignored. The others voted Krezala very creative.

In the other houses, the few Gryffindors got on well enough too, largely because they were all hard working and amiable. Sekinder Singh was the only one close to being a loner, but he was also brilliant at quidditch and made friends with Oliver Harris, almost as good. It was an odd situation as Krait laughed to Severus where the whole of the Slytherin weevils joined the MSHG and only three Gryffs, Sorjak Konal, Richmaya Crouch-Jones and young Mungo Fraser, the ones with family tradition even if in Mungo's case it was only from adoption. The Hufflepuffs were voted 'mostly harmless' but only the muggleborn child Norman Whyteley joined the MSHG. There were two in Ravenclaw however; Venilia Cornfoot, only child, near pure blood, wealthy and with a Ravenclaw tradition and no interest in games who promptly made friends with Avice Crawford, poor, oldest of four siblings, muggle grandparents, parents from Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, and mad keen on as well as good at Quidditch. It was one of those friendships of opposites that work well for the things they did share in common; a love of both work and fun. They both joined the MSHG with eagerness, though they decided NOT to join Mei Chang's gang and be associated with such crazy spirits as Ming Chang.

Otherwise Ravenclaw seemed to be, as so often was the case, made up of rival individuals working for their own ambitions; and other weevils soon found that self opinionated Sampta Patil in Ravenclaw was a very different girl to her twin Sita in Gryffindor. Both were strong on the academic front but Sita did not boast and never sneered. Sampta did both, including at her sister who was nothing out of the ordinary on a broom; whereas Sampta was the girl Gorbrin had tagged as being as good as Me-first Murray and the rivalry between those two spilled into schoolwork and was, as Bella described it 'quite disgusting' to show in front of people out of house. Indeed the quidditch rivalries in Ravenclaw – save for Avice who played for pleasure – were considerable, and all the more ridiculous, as the Slytherin weevils declared scornfully, than if they were all competing for a single place on the House team.

Ming Chang was so disgusted that he dusted all the brooms of the Ravenclaw first with itching powder before junior free flying practice; which did not affect Venilia since she rode determinedly and sedately side-saddle, but significantly disrupted the rest, Me-first yowling that his broom had been jinxed by a jealous rival who supported another team than the Magpies.

"Damn right" said Ming "I did it and I support Ravenclaw's team and you lot are undermining it with your squabbles. And my apologies to those of you who don't squabble but I couldn't tell who would take which school broom."

"We'll suffer for the point to be made if you'll only tell us how to stop it, Chang" said Avice, squirming. Ming whispered in her ear; and she ran off to wash and change.

Argus Clearwater also escaped; he hated quidditch and had volunteered to help Professor Flitwick to catalogue some books instead.

And then there was a new boy; Ian Malfoy, late for unforeseen family reasons, as Professor Dumbledore put it.

Ian sat under the hat, feeling a bit of a fool.

"_**Bravery and a will of iron…no ambition bar to fight for justice; sounds like a Gryffindor unless you wish to follow family tradition"**_ said the Hat.

"_**I have family in Gryffindor too don't I?"**_ asked Ian "_**I think whatever you reckon is probably right."**_

"_**Then let it stand….**_Gryffindor!" declared the Hat.

The Gryffindors roared approval; it made up the numbers a bit, and had not their last Head Boy been a Gryffindor Malfoy?

Ian knew only his new siblings, but the Gryffindors made him feel welcome, and as he rapidly joined the MSHG he was able to make closer friends with its members, especially Mungo, who shared with him being adopted and whose adoptive father was a close friend of Lucius. Ian had lost all the excess flesh he had been carefully putting on and looked like any other young Malfoy; though he lacked the arrogant air.

"Don't worry young Ian, we'll soon teach you how to depress the pretensions of stuck up Ravenclaws with an arrogant drawl and a er, celebrated sneer" drawled Jade, winking at him.

"And that wink totally destroyed the look of young cad ascendant" said her sister Lydia amicably. "Being a Malfoy is to be courteous to all but to know when to be aloof from sycophants; and when exactly to STOP being a gentleman."

"I think I understand" said Ian earnestly "Like Lord Peter Whimsey."

"He reads the right books" said Jade "EXACTLY like Lord Peter Whimsy; not quite all nerves and nose – the nose is for those of us who are Snapes though Lydia and I don't suffer from it being adopted Snapes – but sort of along those lines. Right down to the fine blonde hair. Erica's a hop out o' kin and if it wasn't for the eyes you'd think she was a changeling, bein' so quiet, polite and nice as she is. And Gorbrin and the twins are adopted of course, is it true, Gorbers that Cosmo is blonde?"

"As butter" said Gorbrin cheerfully. "GORBERS? Jade Malfoy Snape, that is an uncalled for piece of caddery."

"Couldn't resist" said Jade "Sorry old boy. Oh yes, calling people old boy; either people you like as a term of affection or people you DON'T like because they'll hate it, especially if you get the tone of voice right. You'll catch up; Gorbrin did. He can sneer at lesser beings and Ravenclaws – though in many cases I repeat myself – like a good 'un."

She disappeared under missiles thrown by the few Ravenclaws that graced the MSHG; though since two of them were Mei and Ming Chang and two others were Mad and Chad there seemed to be more.

"Well at least they're better fun to bait these days" said Jade, extricating herself from several cushions and the furnunculus curse "It used to be that only Gryffs were worth making fun of to get a rise."

A few days later, Severus received an owl at breakfast; and went pale and excused himself.

Lionel slid out of his place.

"Sir? Shall I…." He said to Dumbledore.

"No, Lionel let him send for you if he needs you" said Dumbledore.

Morning lessons were cancelled for a de-gnoming of the grounds, save for those people summoned to a meeting in Myrtle's Loo. Professor Dumbledore was one of them; Lionel was another and the rest were Marauders of various ages from Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Assim Khan through Lynx, Fabian, Jade and Senagra of the Prowling Marauders down to the six Mad Marauders.

Severus and Krait chaired the meeting backed by Sirri, Dione and the faithful Beloc.

The New Marauders were present in a large fire with floo powder for fire speaking and shortly David and Ellie arrived with Myrtle, and Harry's generation with Sephara.

"I didn't want to go through it twice" said Severus "And though it looks a small thing I believe this is part of a major move on the part of Odessa and what the officers we captured were talking about concerning their Kronprinz's plans. I had an owl this morning from a cousin of mine – not a close relation but we've been in correspondence for some years and discovered a mutual Prince ancestor. I call her Auntie Connie to take a rise; Constance Hardbroom is her name."

"Con Hardbroom? She was up at Hogwarts with me" said Myrtle "She was well pissed with me for dying; because the school was almost closed and she was fanatical about her lessons. She was also pretty fanatical about Waldo Avery, his mother was a Hallow and they were friends with the Hardbrooms; and I heard her tell him to choose between Tom Riddle's foolish and childish campaign and her."

"Waldo Avery was one of the nastiest Deatheaters I ever knew" said Severus. "How ironic; so similar to my own history. We Princes must have a taste for the melodramatic in the throes of our first love."

"Well, anyway, I guess she hated deatheaters like poison" said Myrtle.

"Yes. She went on to teach Potions and Herbology at a small exclusive girls' school – we've heard of it, Miss Cackle's, the Hubbles sent their girls there and their boys to Hellibore's School for Young Wizards."

"A lot they'll learn THERE I must say" said Mad "We're related to the Hellibores us Lockharts and Engelbert Hellibore is JUST like my father, poseur to the core. Take off the Helli- and that describes them just nicely, all of them like Me-first Murray only maybe not as grown up."

"A nice summation" murmured Severus "The Hallows are also related to the Hellibores and there are Greengrasse connections as well as Bullivant, Crabbe and Corbin."

"He said as nice a crop of bloodsnobs as you might find anywhere" said Krait.

"Even I don't need him translated any more, Krait" said Lionel. "Sorry sir; you've a message to explain."

"Yes; but I had to touch on the background. Con got back to school this year to find several new teachers; and a Miss Cackle whom she felt was wrong. Miss Cackle had a sister, Agatha, who used to be a deatheater. Con went searching; and found Miss Cackle's body. This then was her twin. And Professor Hauptman, so called, whose first name is Gerhardt, was doing his best to make sure all the older girls thought he was wonderful. Sound familiar anybody, name or tactics?"

Dumbledore broke the pencil he had been toying with, with a sharp SNAP making several of them look round.

"Gerhardt, wasn't that the name of the Prince those officers supported?" said David.

"Full marks, Fido" said Severus softly. "Our good looking, blonde, clever, sexy Professor Hauptman is none other than the grandson of Gellert Grindelwald and this was his idea, to take over Miss Cackle's through his grandmother – for Connie said he referred to the false Miss Cackle as his grandmother once. Agatha Cackle had a liaison with Grindelwald, presumably for mutual benefit. She's tried to take over the school before with some cronies, back in the seventies. Sound familiar again? Then it was probably for Voldemort, now it's for her grandson and Odessa."

"I'm surprised she got an owl out" said Lynx.

"She didn't – as such" said Severus "She got herself and six first years out, the ones brave enough to come. She made a gate. They are in the Leaky Cauldron; she asked me to talk by floo and this is where I got the details. I intend to remove the children first by sending a party of children to Diagon Alley and leaving with three boys and three girls extra. We'll confuse the number count because Sirri, Beloc and Polly will go transfigured into human form and apparate quietly back here. Sirri will just have to spread the bulk and look like a fat kid I'm afraid being so full of baby. I want Lynx and Fabian as fifth year prefects to be leading the party and the mini – no, sorry, Mad Marauders – to pick some reliable weevils and warts to join you for numbers."

"Mimi would be another one who can apparate elf fashion" said Jade quietly "And so can I; I can transfigure into weevil size. That's only one short; Lydia is good at elf-style apparating too. We can replace the whole flipping lot. We'll be boys, Lydia and me, that's three of each for the further disguise of six girls."

"What about Miss Hardbroom?" said Lynx.

"We grown ups will handle that" said Severus "I thought with polyjuice potion, let them try to follow half a dozen Constance Hardbrooms while Beloc whips her up north the quick way. And THEN we plan the attack on Agatha Cackle and Gerhardt Grindelwald."

"I'll go steal some warts and weevils" said Jade unwinding herself. "I guarantee the ones I'm thinking of will be up for it. Do we avoid goblins though in case the Odessa agents start shooting?"

"No; in fact, even better, it's obvious they're NOT the Cackle children" said Severus "They won't draw attention to themselves unless they're certain it's their prey."

"What's our reason to be there?" asked Lynx.

"Field trip to a book signing of Madam Snape's school stories, permission obtained to attend" said Krait. "I'll arrange that with the Smiths; they'll be happy enough."

"Good enough" said Lynx. "Sorted."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The entire of the muggle studies hobbies group of the first year and a selection from the second made their way from Kings' Cross to the Leaky Cauldron in a beautiful crocodile, heading inside for Diagon Alley. Outside the Leaky Cauldron a good looking young blonde man stood reading a newspaper; and he was clearly trying to count them. They let him. Inside the inn they flurried about giggling loudly about meeting a real author and covered Lynx darting upstairs from the young blonde man nursing a drink. Then they began to make their way through the wall in the alley behind the inn into Diagon Alley with Fabian going first and obligingly counting them aloud as they emerged.

Lynx knocked on the appropriate door and called

"Hogwarts!" softly.

A tall, spare woman with her hair up in a bun opened the door.

"A child?" she said.

"A prefect escorting a selection of chee-hilds" said Lynx "Three boys, three girl uniforms for your charges, which of you six is going to be a boy?"

"Me" said one girl "It'll be a lark"

"It is logical" said another.

"Oh dear" said a third "I don't think…"

"I shan't! Miss Hardbroom, they can't make me can they?" said a fourth, in a whiney tone.

"How awful!" said third "I suppose it's necessary?"

The sixth, taking this as volunteering, just looked relieved.

"Yes" said Lynx "There's less likelihood of the deception being spotted then. Jostle and shove and be unladylike you boys; we prefects will tick you off but that's what boys are there for, to get into trouble. Trust me; I have a brother."

"So have I, and older one" said the one who had agreed it was logical.

"Then you know all about it. I'll leave you to change; when we come back be on the watch, and we'll swap six out and six in."

"How do they plan to get back?" asked Miss Hardbroom.

"Oh they're under transfiguration and four of them are elves" said Lynx. "The other two are just dead hard…they're Severus' daughters so you can guess; they have the zig-zag scar."

"Is it your custom to refer to a Professor by his first name?" said Miss Hardroom repressively.

"When it's Marauder business, yes" said Lynx "Marauders do things like fight Huorns and Werewolves when Odessa send them; you can't normally be a proper marauder until you're twelve. Severus was a marauder from his generation you see. We protect and serve."

"Wow!" said the one who had agreed it was a lark.

"NO funny ideas Isabel" said Miss Hardbroom. "You, Maud and Drusillina, I need to cut your hair; we'll do that before you put on your new uniforms so there are no short hairs on the clothes."

Isabel made a face behind her back.

Maud gave a disgusted look at the one who had hummed and ha'd and one of contempt at the one who had whined.

Lynx stared at that one.

"You're a Prewett" she said.

"Yes, I'm Mafalda Prewett" she said.

"Oh yes, your people are accountants, aren't they" said Lynx. "I'm a Black-Weasley; we're second hand cousins but I expect we'll both live it down. After all, I'm also related to the Crouch family which is a mixed blessing. Anyway, got to go! Sev and the others will be along for you shortly, and he said kiss Auntie Connie for him" which she proceeded to do before whirlwinding out.

"WELL!" said Miss Hardbroom.

"Do you think their discipline is awfully lax there?" said Drusillina timidly.

"Well if it is there is no need to relax our own standards. And it is better than being in the hands of Odessa" said Miss Hardbroom briskly.

Lynx joined the others.

"What kept you?" said Fabian

"I keep telling you, you don't ASK ladies that question!" said Lynx. "We're in plenty of time for the signing."

Krait signed books for the gaggle of children; to add local colour she was staying there all day, and it also gave her the opportunity to observe some possible Odessa agents.

It would be easy just to bring in the older ones and grab them; but that would alert their forces.

Smiths were doing a roaring trade selling the Cassie books from having a signing anyway, and helping out the Smiths was always good. The weevils and Warts were not required to buy the books so long as they looked as though they were, and murmured their non intention to buy – or in a few cases 'I already have it' to whom Krait promised to sign their own copies back at school with appropriate inscriptions.

They retired to Fortescues for Ice Cream – as one might expect them to do on a school trip – and acted as innocently as if they had no ulterior motive in mind.

Back in the Leaky Cauldron larking about on the stairs six came down and six went quietly up; and then they were away, Fabian lining them up in crocodile and counting them, firmly calling the six extra ones Darryl, Wilfrid, Erasmus, Jade, Lydia and Mimi. They could check the names of girls at the school and find all the names were genuine and the three boys names too, but belonging to the three unpleasant second year Slytherin boys who would never have come along!

The six transfigured back into their own forms, Beloc bowed, Sirri inclined her head and the girls curtseyed to Miss Hardbroom.

"Daddy and sundry Marauders will be along presently, Great-Aunt Constance" said Jade formally. "I expect they'll set up illusions to seem that the children are trying to get out too; they need to think they've succeeded in stopping you after all. I should think it'll get noisy. Have fun! We'll see you at Hogwarts."

And they all apparated away, leaving Miss Hardbroom feeling slightly breathless.

Other Professors at Hogwarts could have told her that this was the effect Jade Snape had on a lot of people; but they were not at that time there to ask.

And then a selection of adults arrived in her room with hardly more than a subdued 'poc' between them all. One of them had enough of a resemblance to her to guess that this was her nephew Severus.

"Severus?"

"Constance…good to meet you at last, I wish it were in more fortuitous circumstances" said Severus, kissing her hand with old world courtesy.

"Dear me, this is all very rapid…you believe in getting things done!" said Constance Hardbroom.

"The sooner we get you safe the sooner we can turn our attentions to those devils in your school" said the tall dark grim man.

"I'm forgetting my manners" said Severus "Sirius Black…Remus Lupin…Assim Khan…Harry Potter….Draco Malfoy…Ron Weasley….Neville Longbottom. We can all take the killing curse except Assim and bounce it; and what we propose is this. You – or me transfigured into you – are seen desperately trying to get to the owl office. They kill you; and then come up and slaughter the children. We've one spare, but I want Assim on overwatch because he's very hard but he wasn't part of the pact that helped us bounce Avada Kedavra, he'll place all their faces into the Pensieve later and our cousin Callum and Draco's little sister Erica will draw them for reference. We'll report the outrage in the newspapers and then they can rest easy. And then we kill them."

Constance blinked.

"You take that very easily" she said.

"We've rather had to get used to it" said Draco "None of us like it, Madam Hardbroom; but we like the alternatives even less."

"What if they try to kidnap the children and force them back to school?" suggested Constance.

"Then we might just let them and be under cover there" said Sirius grinning wolfishly. "They'll share a dormitory, won't they, so no embarrassment with us posing as little girls….with transfigurations there's no problem about it wearing off like with polyjuice potion!"

"You throw around such difficult transfigurations as though they were child's play – and that girl Jade and her sister and the house elves….."

"Free elves. Not house elves" said Severus "Sirri is my mistress, Beloc is her brother, Mimi is my adopted daughter, Sirri's child, and Polly was born free to free elves. Polly and Mimi are at Hogwarts; and I expect they apparated straight to the train to meet their new schoolfellows. Right, let's get ready….."

In his assumption about the two youthful elves Severus was entirely correct; and Bella Black was busy interviewing the new ones.

Mafalda Prewett she dismissed out of hand as a whiney brat only too likely to fetch up in Slytherin if only one might not foist her onto Ravenclaw.

Maud Enid Hubble-Langstaff was a different matter, a sensible girl with a sardonic sense of humour who described Gerhardt Grindelwald – or Hauptman as she called him – as likely to make a fortune if only he could bottle IT and sell it to boys and men.

"He's a slimy git" she said "But he seems to keep the big girls' tongues hanging out."

Maud was the one with the tongue in her head; Isabel Nightshade was generally quiet, though she had been the first to agree to dress as a boy but her eyes twinkled in a way Bella liked. Drusillina was an odd girl, seeming very cold; but when Bella was explaining the MSHG her eyes burned.

"I will join this and do anything I can to fight these creeps!" she declared passionately; a fiery child very different to the cold self contained front breaking through.

It reminded Bella of Uncle Severus; for she had seen the private Severus in Malfoy Manor as well as the more self contained Professor Snape, who was still controlled to some extent even when relaxed with the MSHG. She made a private note that Drusillina would do.

Miriam Moonshine would not.

Bella had elicited the information that Maud, Isabel and Miriam had started school knowing each other, but Miriam was plainly almost regretting the adventure.

"I guess it'll make a good story when I'm grown up but adventures are scary and uncomfortable, not like they are in 'Cassie'" she sighed.

"Oh do you read Cassie too? Madam Malfoy-Snape writes them; Cassie's loosely based on my cousin Jade you know; she's in the fourth this year" said Bella. It was a point in Miriam's favour, but then….

Emerald Cherrytree too lacked what it took. At least she had had the guts to come; but like Miriam she seemed to have got to the end of her adventurous spirit.

"So" said Drusillina "You have goblins and elves at school? We've been taught – well I have – that goblins don't have the self discipline to learn to high level and elves are too dim."

"Well you got taught wrong" said Bella "And any deliberately racist comments will get you turned into a woodlouse until you apologise. And there's living proof; Kinat, our first Goblin, left last year with six NEWTs and you don't get THAT score with a short attention span!"

"SIX? Are you certain?"

"'Course I'm certain! They were all staying at Malfoy Manor – I live there with my sister and family – when the results arrived! Four 'O's and two 'E's, he was disappointed to miss an 'O' on his potions but I gather the exam was a stinker. Cousin Hawke took seven of course, six 'O's and an 'E' in Ancient Runes 'cos he translated one bit as wogga-wogga instead of blogga-wogga or at least that's what it sounded like to me. I haven't even SEEN ancient Egyptian, we're still on Greek" said Bella airily. "And Polly and Mimi are WELL up in their respective classes too, let me tell you, and all the goblins at Hogwarts right now, oh and watch out for Garjala, she's a prefect and she used to be up to all the larks in school, so Jade says, but since she's been a prefect she's a real tartar! Not unfair, you know, but tough as – well, as Professor Snape with toothache. Gosh, THAT's a scary thought" said Bella "No, Madam Malfoy-Snape would bully him into letting her pull it."

By the time they got to Hogwarts Bella and Mimi were firm friends with Maud, Isabel and Drusillina; and Bella knew she had her group to make a bid for being the next group of Marauders.

Griselen and Genavka were cool enough but not quite Marauder material; they had had too many unpleasant adventures in their short lives to want to do anything but take advantage of an education they never would have guessed would be theirs; and though Mimi's very early days had been hard, she had all but forgotten that in a loving family even as Jade and Lydia had. And Richmaya wasn't QUITE right either, though Bella liked her well enough; and if Venilia and Avice eschewed Mei's gang that did not do half as much as Marauders that ruled them out too. And Bella was determined she would be a marauder; was not her cousin Sirius a founder member and her nephew Draco one of the next ones?

It was only right and proper.

Besides, Bella Black, second chance schoolgirl, had managed to read up more about Bella Black Lestrange, Deatheater and monster extraordinaire than her family had realised; had found out why Mr and Madam Longbottom had treated her with restraint at first and why the name just wasn't mentioned.

She had also found a photograph of Rodolphus Lestrange and had puzzled over why her previous self might have married THAT.

They had promised to tell her everything one day; but nothing would make Bella be such a bitch, she was certain! And it was then her duty to fight against what she had once been before she was a little girl again.

The tall, spare woman with dark hair went out of the Leaky Cauldron, surreptitiously heading down Diagon Alley with a piece of paper in her hand.

The tall blonde young man stepped out.

"Excuse me Madam Hardbroom."

"I – you must be mistaken, my name is Prudence Prince!" said Severus.

"Indeed, a cousin of Severus Snape" said the young man.

"Leave me alone or I'll call the aurors" said Severus.

"I regret you have not that option. Give me the letter."

Severus made as though to go for his wand, awkwardly like a woman not used to it.

The words he expected were said, and there was a flash of green light.

The headache dissipated quickly through the bloodgroup; and Severus fell to the ground, slowing his heartbeat, dropping his breathing rate to almost hibernation levels.

The young wizard twitched the note from his fingers and melted into shadows as the cries of people alerted to the idea that something was going on, realising what the green flash signified, started to jostle to get away.

Severus, on the ground in a huddle, reflected that if any of his rapscallion pupils were here they would be heading towards the trouble not away.

It had taken seconds.

Now the fellow would be reading the letter, written by Connie herself in her distinctive spiky handwriting, an impassioned plea to Professor Dumbledore to rescue her and the six little girls with her, who would be willing to testify to what had happened as they had seen the body of the genuine Miss Cackle.

When Connie had protested that they had not, Severus had explained why he wanted that in.

It would be more likely to make them want to kill the juvenile witnesses; and that would be easier than having to be little girls for several days in a strange school.

Severus watched as there was a green flash from an upstairs window in the Leaky Cauldron and the headache of a bounced Killing Curse rolled briefly over him.

Then Draco was on the scene in official robes, logging a dead body outside, taking depositions from the crowd on a green flash from inside the inn; and it began to rain.

Severus sighed inaudibly.

One had to suffer for one's melodrama.

At least Draco would shortly use mobilocorpus un him to take him inside then take covered 'bodies' away if anyone was watching.

And so it fell out, the older marauders apparating back to Hogwarts while Draco did all the flamboyant auror work.

They got back in time for the train to be running into the station; and were ready in the great hall – those who had any business to be there – in time for the Hatting of the new ones.

Emerald Cherrytree went first, pulling a bit of a face at the scruffy old hat; She was to be a Ravenclaw, and Bella was not surprised. Drusillina was next and was sent into Slytherin, to the cheers of the House. Maud was a Gryffindor, to the relief of that small house. They were to receive Isabel Nightshade too after Miriam Moonshine had been declared a Hufflepuff; and Mafalda Prewett was in Slytherin.

"Oh well, into each life some rain must fall" said Bella philosophically to Mimi as they clapped politely.

"There's nothing TOO wrong with Mafalda" said Mimi, pulling a face "Only there's not a lot too RIGHT with her either."

"And she was looking askance at the goblins and you" said Bella "Though after hearing about woodlice she didn't dare say anything!"

"Oh well, Drusillina's with us" said Mimi "And NOW we can begin Marauding properly!"

Next day, the Wizarding Times reported in restrained language an outrage in Diagon Alley where a middle aged woman and six small girls had been killed with Avada Kedavra and the auror's office were seeking one or more tall blonde men with short hair who might have had something to do with it. Foreign influence was said to be suspected.

The Daily Prophet ranted that Something would HAVE to be done about the terrible massacre in Diagon Alley and the wholesale murder of children. They made no constructive suggestions.

The Quibbler claimed that the death of the children and their mother in Diagon Alley was an illusion because the so-called mother was in fact a hag and the children were already dead and sucked dry by her and that it was a government cover-up because she was in fact the mother of a prominent government official.

"Lovegood just doesn't live on this planet at all" said Severus looking at Connie's face at breakfast as she gazed in bemusement at a copy of the Quibbler "It could have been weirder; he could have claimed that the deaths occurred at the hands of the crumple-horned snorcrack and the government did not want anyone to know there was a feral one in Diagon Alley."

"The crumple…WHAT?"

"The man's a lunatic; he lives in a fantasy world" said Severus "Ravenclaw you know; one of their weirder offerings. After your time my dear, and slightly before mine thank goodness. His daughter's only relatively weird, she fought Voldemort with us wearing garlic and leek earrings to keep off some made up creature I've forgotten the name of. People read the Quibbler for a laugh not to believe it."

"Oh" said Connie.

It was a most expressive monosyllable.

Ravenclaw considered themselves to be the gainers in Emerald who turned out to have a flair for Quidditch; though it caused a fit of the sulks from the talented Me-first who could not bear anyone but himself to be any good. Miriam also took to the game, if not quite as brilliantly and was voted an asset to Hufflepuff whose only distinguishing marks at first year Quidditch were when Tom Smith and Paul Semple-Reed had crashed into each other the first day and both crashed independently most practices thereafter.

Neither Maud nor Isabel distinguished themselves on the quidditch pitch but both proved fairly good at potions, which surprised Miss Hardbroom since Maud's mother she declared had been an accident waiting to happen and quite hopeless with a cauldron.

Drusillina and Mafalda distinguished themselves publicly only by being hard working all round; but Bella and Mimi knew that there was much more to Drusillina than that!

They rapidly shortened her to Lina as it shouted better.

And Bella wondered what was going to happen next about the school in Austria.

What was happening was that a team was being put together with great care.

Severus, Krait, Dione, Beloc, Sirius the New Marauders, Harry, Draco, Ron, Erich, David, Ellie, Myrtle, Neville, Sephara, the Prowling Marauders, Tala and Seagh went, backed up by Tovarisch Kalashnikov's famous baby and silver hollowpoint bullets to load in them. There were several members missing due to the incipient arrival of several new members within their bellies.

Miss Hardbroom insisted on going too and was told by Severus to stay near the back and let professionals handle most of it. As some of the people he referred to as Professionals were children of fourteen or fifteen years old Constance almost balked until she saw those children stripping, checking and loading their muggle weapons with the ease and skill of those well used to using them.

She did not intend to be a passenger though; and told Severus so.

"Good; you can be on wand work overwatch" said Severus "Hitting an enemy with a distraction or getting up a _protego_ if someone's having their back attacked. That'll take a lot of heat off us, thank you."

Lionel Dell petitioned to come; and Severus wavered.

"All right; you and any two you pick" he said "I want the rest back to protect the school, and that's what I planned to leave you doing. But you won't learn any younger and this will be more personal than the Huorn attack. Killing trees and werewolves is easier than killing men in man form."

"Like you say we won't learn any younger" said Lionel "We need to know that we can be real backup to you and don't chicken it. I'll have Callum and Cynner; they're the hardest and Callum's been drawing maps in his sleep anyway which I have here for you."

Severus pounced on the drawings. His young cousin's extraordinary divination talents were very handy.

"Oh excellent" he said softly "Connie has shown me some of the layout – look, Con, this is the mountain, isn't it, and this'll be the disposition of their troops, tiny perfect pictures of them!"

"I don't understand" said Connie "And MUST you call me Connie in front of the children?"

"The last first; we are all comrades, there is no rank; it is no sign of disrespect but of comradeship" said Severus "Out of school is the rule; in school all is formal. These were drawn by our young cousin Callum who disappears into a trance every now and then and accurately draws a future that might then be averted or used. He's always right; it's just not something we can count on happening."

Agatha Cackle had eight evil witches with her as well as her grandson and his two bodyguards, Connie explained; and once she had raised the alarm she did not anticipate Agatha permitting any of the original staff making waves.

"She has a fondness for turning people into frogs" she said. "I have no doubt that she may force compliance in others. Perhaps I should have stayed and fought but I thought getting word out was more important; and if I only sent the children I did not think they would have been believed."

"Had they got to Hogwarts they would have been; but getting here would have been the trick" said Severus "A weevil is a very small person to entrust information to; a wart has had a year to learn resource and sagacity in, if not infinite of that ilk – er, literary reference – and might have managed. But these I suspect were the only ones young enough not to succumb to a kind of love confundment that I believe may be a special spell of the Grindelwald family. I know one wizard thus confunded by Grindelwald himself; it may be personal magnetism – as Tom Riddle did have personal magnetism and the greater kudos to you, Connie, not to have been fooled by it. And Riddle backed his up with compulsions. However! Twelve inside the school, and by this map a couple of sections of wizards and one of werewolves on the outside. A section is about ten men for those of you who don't know. That's a whole platoon to cover the outside against assault; you have an anti-apparating zone, Con?"

"Naturally."

"Equally naturally, house elves can pass it with their unique style of apparation through a different – all right, I'll leave the arithmancy out?"

"Yes. Are you saying you can use house elves to apparate people in?"

"It's a little more subtle than that, Connie. We formed a bloodpact to protect Harry; and elves were involved in it, freely. We can now apparate through the same otherplace they use that anti-apparating spells don't cover. We can carry you and Lionel, Cynner and Callum."

"Are you saying that such young children were involved before the death of Voldemort?"

"Some we blooded to protect; my daughters, so if they were kidnapped…..others have come in later. It is a living thing the bloodgoup, Connie; it is a reality of Hogwarts. We'll bring in Assim too when we can be sure we don't have to spend a third of our time washing our fluffy white tummies. He'll be with Remus and Tonks in charge of castle defence at home with a layer of very hard people to back him up, because the Mad Marauders haven't wasted their time, any more than the rest of Lionel's group have. I'd be tempted to leave the Prowling Marauders at home too if I didn't want kids the same age as the schoolgirls there to keep them under wraps as you might say. We don't know what state the other staff are going to be in either and I might want to keep the kids there as backup in the ranks as you might say. You, Con, will come back here afterwards and take over teaching potions, I'm afraid at all levels: I will stay, as will my ladies, to teach and normalise things; and Erich has agreed to remain too. I'm negotiating to get David, in which case I'll also have Ellie. Having a group of hard people with bloodkin back in the castle right in the middle of Odessa territory might actually be an advantage. I'll transfer some of our kids and the place will have to go co-educational."

"The sound of Nice young ladies' jaws hitting the floor will shatter your eardrums" said Connie. "I must say, I am more impressed by your level of discipline here than I was expecting; and the courtesy shown to professors."

"We stole THAT from Beauxbatons and Eton" said Krait. "It is a pretty thing to instil courtesy and respect in the young for their elders. It's how we can afford the informality out of school. Because in school we have a high level of discipline; and expect from those who we permit to be informal a high level of self discipline. And with those who fight evil for real – these kids don't play at it as one might think – you need that. The MSHG to some extent and the Marauders totally are those kids who have pledged to give up the innocence of childhood to ensure that others do not have to. All right, are we ready to move out? Con, you need to give us visualisations, the guides will take the pictures from you with legilimensy and then we'll get into formation."

It was frightening to receive stares from hard eyed young people, perhaps even more so than from the older ones like Sirius and Severus; these young people had seen violence, had grown up with it. Connie had heard the news from England of course about Voldemort; but Miss Cackle had always been wont to dismiss it in her comfortable way, pretending unpleasantness did not exist; assuming that out of England they would all be safe.

It was a sham.

Now Connie understood why it was so wrong that the Academy had no lessons in Defence against the Dark Arts, why the girls they turned out were inadequately equipped to meet any but the most sheltered life; and realised that resigning her teaching post in favour of her forceful and forward thinking nephew would do the girls under her care more good than remaining. She had always tried to teach more about the realities of life than perhaps Miss Cackle liked; and it had not made her popular. But she had not gone far enough.

It was time for a shake up.

And at Hogwarts she could concentrate on teaching the potioneering she loved without having to drum any botany into the dim heads of her class since they had a Herbology teacher dedicated to the purpose!

And the facilities were fantastic.

All of which assumed of course that she survived this grim foray.

And then she was being firmly taken by the hand by Beloc, who grinned and winked at her, the familiar fellow!

And they were apparating smoothly out.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 **

The forces of Hogwarts landed smoothly in the great hall of Miss Cackle's Ladies' Academy, crouched ready for action and Kalashnikovs at the ready, wands taped to the barrel to reach the trigger guard for a swift change from a hail of silver to wand action. Soft soled shoes made no noise as Abraxus and Hawke ran to the door as advance guard and Hawke covered his brother opening the door.

"Clear" said Hawke softly.

Abraxus covered Hawke moving out; their squad followed them, Kinat and Romulus, Neville, Sephara and Myrtle.

Through the other door David and Erich performed similar actions backed up by Sirius and Lionel Dell's little group. Severus had designated Beloc as Connie's protector; and she was his guide with the third and most dangerous group to go to Miss Cackle's study and the staff bedrooms. That was Severus, Krait, Dione, Harry, Ron and Draco, and the Prowling Marauders were left holding the great hall secure, with Lynx levitating up to the little window that led to the storeroom behind the hall to hold that securely.

"David's taken down a couple" said Severus calmly "Will you like to take out the old bag yourself Connie?"

"With great pleasure Severus" said Connie.

And the door to Miss Cackle's room turned to ice and melted as Krait nodded at it.

"Impressive!" gasped Connie; but she did not pause long to be impressed.

The wand duel was vicious; and Severus signalled Dione to stay as backup as well as Beloc.

Dione grinned.

She, perhaps one of the weakest of the group in some respects, was accorded the respect from her beloved Severus of being equal to an old deatheater if Connie should go down; and indeed she was glad she had stayed! For as Agatha Cackle started to say

"_Avad-"_ Dione automatically had the mirror shield up in front of Connie; and as Agatha Cackle completed the spell the green flash bounced off the mirror and took her rather by surprise.

"Sorry to steal her from you Connie" said Dione "Overtrained I guess."

"And I'm not about to complain about that!" said Connie crisply "What was that?"

THAT was the sound of breaking glass.

Severus was swearing and there were sounds of violent spells.

"What happened?" Dione and Connie caught up with Severus and Krait as Beloc went to support Ron, wrestling with a rather beefy witch for a wand.

Ron's was broken again.

Beloc poked his up the witches robe and let fly with some curse that made her squeal in a pained falsetto.

The Witch turned out to be one of Gerhardt Grindelwald's bodyguard in drag and Ron's expletives as he got over the idea of having to be more courteous about killing a woman were entertainingly fruity.

"THAT was Gerhardt getting away while his bodyguard detained us" said Severus "He's long gone; he's good, I'll give him that."

"And now the forces outside know we're here" said Krait. "Better mop up inside quickly."

It did not take long.

The efficient and well practised forces of Hogwarts made short work of witches more used to bullying children than taking on opposition their own size, and David Fraser was quickly checking the outer walls of the castle – for it was a small castle – to see how defensible they were.

"Bit Schloss Adler here" he said "Werewolves can make the climb, it's stiff for a human – but broom assaults well possible. Up on the walls people and make each shot count….here they come!"

Only the rigid discipline of the MSHG got the defenders into place in time.

Then they were firing, a ragged sound but each shot told.

Severus stood on the uppermost tower chanting protective spells, his hair streaming impressively in the breeze where it had escaped from its usual tie; and Dione and Beloc his bodyguards. Connie was told to go to the great hall and send the Prowling Marauders to gather the girls up.

One girl had issued from her bedroom; she had messy long black plaits.

"Hello" said Lynx "Are you a prefect?"

"No we don't have prefects…. I say, you're just a kid like us!"

"Yes, we're here to rescue you" said Lynx "I'm Lynx, who are you?"

"I'm Hilda Hubble."

"Oh a cousin of small Maud-Whatever-the-rest-was?"

"Maud Enid Hubble Langstaff, yes. What's really going on? Can I help?"

"I told you, we're rescuing you from Agatha Cackle and her Odessa agents and you can help by getting all the girls up and safely into dressing gowns and slippers and letting then use the lavatory before coming down to the Main Hall; Miss Hardbroom will tell you all what's going on there."

Jade approached with another girl who looked like the first.

"Oh you've found Hilda; this is Sylvia her sister she said they'd lead a muggle studies hobby group."

"I hadn't got that far" said Lynx "Only getting everyone up, in dressing gowns and slippers 'cos it's nippy up here and going to the loo 'cos you can't concentrate on a full bladder."

"Specially the little ones" said Jade "Right, heave out the sixth first they're known to the kids."

"There's only four little one, Miss Hardbroom took the others" said Hilda "We didn't understand why, but then Miss Cackle started being horrible and Professor Hauptman was all yucky and soppy."

"Excellent, one the love-confundment charm DIDN't work on" said Jade "He's done a runner and dad – he's leading the force – wants all the girls safely together so if need be Connie Hardbroom can lead everyone through a gate while we fight a rearguard action. C'mon, step to it; we need you civilians safe."

"If he's gone what's the trouble?"

Jade sighed with impatience

"The twenty dark wizards and their dozen werewolves storming the gates" she said. Sylvia gasped and Hilda paled.

"Can – can we help?" she said "We don't know any fighting spells you know but we could hit them on the head with cauldrons!"

"I like her spirit" said Lynx

"Yeah, but her spirit's most use to us right now telling younger kids that it'll be fine and getting them to Con" said Jade "Ta, Hilda mate, but not until we've taught you how to do it properly."

Hilda and Sylvia were left to rouse and hustle the younger ones while Jade and Lydia ordered the fifth and fourth out of bed; Jade pointing out that these rarefied souls would not obey a goblin like Senagra and would screech at Fabian for being that alien being, a boy.

"Whereas we're used to their foibles and many deficiencies" she added for Fabian's benefit.

"Thank you so much" he murmured and prepared to act as usher.

Senagra's concept of acting as usher – as she later joked – was to shout "'USH!" at over excited small people.

Of the four first years one of them was declaring that this couldn't be happening because her horoscope predicted a PERFECT term; one with a cage full of nifflers grasped in her hand as well as her official cat on her shoulders was busy asking questions and declared that she had not gone with Miss Hardbroom because she thought it was dishonourable to desert school and she would have to apologise – her name was Muriel – and a third lived up to her name of Prudence by declaring that it had seemed rather a drastic action and then adding with devastating honesty that she had been scared to go anyway and she was scared now. The fourth, Clementine, asked what PROOF had they of what was happening and Jade said

"Look out of the ruddy window, you cynical weevil".

Of course they all did; and cried out in fear at the sky black with the brooms of attackers silhouetted by the green flashes of the killing curse they were firing repeatedly and, it has to be said, unsuccessfully.

Once in the Hall Connie Hardbroom addressed the girls; who fell silent as she banged the table; they plainly respected and even feared her.

"Girls; by now the false Miss Cackle will have shown you her true colours I'm sure. The real Miss Cackle I'm afraid is dead; finding her body was what convinced me to go for help. I had not time to offer escape to any but the youngest, those in my form. The six who came have been installed in Hogwarts, at least for the time being; those who remained had various reasons which I naturally respect. My nephew, Professor Severus Snape, who teaches Potions at Hogwarts and who stood beside the famous Harry Potter, has come with a group to defeat the forces of Agatha Cackle and her grandson Gerhardt Grindelwald, masquerading here under the name of Professor Hauptman. Let me tell you that those who found him charming were under confundment; such as Gellert Grindelwald used once too. The young people from Hogwarts School are coming round all the older ones to remove any deeply laid magical charms; because the level of education at Hogwarts puts our school to shame. Do not fight their searching. They will not hurt you."

"But Miss Hardbroom, we don't want a boy or a GOBLIN in our heads!" whined one girl.

"Don't be ridiculous Morgana" snapped the Hardbroom "The lad is not looking for anything private; and Senagra is a little girl like the rest of you, I am ashamed of you displaying such ignorance and racism!"

It had been a shock to Connie herself; but she had quickly come to see that the goblin children at Hogwarts were essentially no different to their human fellows.

"Next person who makes a racist comment gets the Hogwarts prefects punishment" said Lynx laconically "Hoisted in the air as a four-foot woodlouse."

It was an incentive to keep any antagonistic views to themselves!

On the whole, Senagra was given more curious looks than antagonistic ones; the girls here were so wealthy that they had mostly never met a goblin or even thought about them.

Senagra was half horrified; that made her and Kinat, when they met him, ambassadors of a whole race to these girls – and consequently their families!

Jade discovered girls her own age whose surnames she recognised; Dilys Hornby whose Great Aunt was the Olive Hornby who had made Myrtle's life miserable and who was at this school to avoid Myrtle; she seemed a reasonable girl so Jade laughed and said,

"Actually she's out there fighting for you; my cousin Abraxus did a ritual and sacrificed his hand to put her back into her bones and she's married to him. It's your Great Aunt she has it in for, not you, you know!"

"Crumbs!" said Dilys.

Another familiar name was Hester Figg, only great niece of the squib Arabella Figg; she quite hero-worshipped Harry Potter from all the stories her great aunt told her – for Arabella Figg was NOT ignored by her family as so many squibs were – and was delighted to be meeting him in person! Jade promised to introduce her if she could, and Hester was overjoyed! Any romantic thoughts about Gerhardt were readily pushed aside for a more substantial hero!

The other name Jade recognised was Hellibore, a girl named Angelica; a bitter looking girl with a hunched back who passed snide comments on – so far as Jade could see – everything and everyone.

There was nothing to lose then; so Jade approached her and said bluntly,

"Your back looks uncomfortable; have your parents anything against putting it straight on principle?"

"My grandfather told dad that he was the greatest wizard alive and that HE couldn't do it" said Angelica "He's head of Hellibore's School for Wizards you know."

"Well pardon me but your grandfather's talking rot" said Jade scornfully "Even I know how to fix that; it's a condition that runs in the Prince line and I've watched Dad fix young Prince backs so many times, 'cos Snape and Hardbroom are both Princes, you know."

"All right then; if you're so clever, do it!" Angelica almost sneered and turned her back to Jade.

"This is going to hurt; it's well bad" said Jade, laying a soft hand on the worst of the hump and letting fly with a medical transfiguration that to her was simplicity itself.

Angelica paled and bit back a scream of agony; and straightened up to turn round in anger – realising how she was straightening as she did so!

"Merlin's bedsocks!" she breathed "You really COULD do it! What is my grandfather teaching then if a little girl no older than me can do what he can't?"

Jade shrugged.

"We do some deep stuff at Hogwarts; but my dad's going to take over here as headmaster so you'll get to learn more, you know. If you work hard; and specially if you join the MSHG for learning extra stuff. It's voluntary you see; its for those of us hard enough to be ready to fight, like we are today, us younger ones blooded by watching, though of course I've seen plenty of action because of living with Dad and Mum and watching since I wasn't s'posed to. I helped bounce the killing curse off of Harry and so did my sister because we were part of the pledge; it's why I have the scar. Not everyone in the MSHG is supposed to do that much but most back up those of us that do."

"It sounds extraordinary. Well your dad is a greater wizard than my granddad; you haven't even worked up a sweat!"

"Meh, transfigurations are my thing" shrugged Jade "My friends and me we're perfecting out animagus forms."

The Prowling Marauders had decided to honour the original marauders – as Lynx wanted to be an animagus anyway – and had chosen forms and nicknames. Lynx was a lynx, but picked the less direct name Velvet, for her silent paws; Fabian, an eagle owl, was Wol; Senagra, a falcon, was Swoop; and Jade, a snake, unsurprisingly, had picked the name Slink.

"You're pretty amazing" said Angelica, intensely "And I'm going to suggest to my dad that he sends my brothers to Hogwarts not Hellibore's!"

"Or they can come here" shrugged Jade "Dad's going to make it co-ed; it's more fun with boys around to taunt and jinx you know!"

"It'll lose him some" said Angelica.

"Meh, only the ones he wouldn't want to keep" said Jade "I say, it seems a lot quieter; which means our lot have subdued the invaders."

"Or they've been killed by the invaders" said Angelica.

"Huh, I TOLD you I have the blood pact; I'd have felt if any of our types were in trouble" said Jade. "I'll go and tell Great Aunt Connie."

Angeica gasped.

"Do you actually get away with calling MISS HARDBROOM that?"

"Oh only OUT of school of course" said Jade "In front of this lot I'd better be formal" and she went forward and curtseyed. "Miss Hardbroom, as acting head I have the pleasure to report that the forces without appear to have been subdued; my father says he'll be down shortly" she added as Severus imparted the information to her.

Shortly thereafter the grim eyed and slightly dishevelled group of Severus and a few of his cohorts came into the room.

The Prowling Marauders leaped to their feet and stood to attention from where they had been seated cross legged with the rest. Hilda and Sylvia, startled, copied them; and after a pause so too did Angelica.

Severus bowed formally to Connie and kissed her hand.

"Madam Hardbroom" he said "All is now under control; just a little mopping up. You may be seated, school" he added for the benefit of those who had risen, a straggle of other younger girls copying their elders.

"Professor Snape" said Miss Hardbroom "Allow me to present you to the girls; this is Professor Snape who will be taking over as your headmaster and will hopefully have lessons ready by the end of the weekend."

"Oh crumbs, we forgot the other teachers!" whispered Jade to Lynx.

Severus had ears as sharp as any lynx.

"Miss Weasley, Miss Snape, go immediately and correct your deficiency; and when you have found the unfortunate staff have the goodness to take them to the head's office, if they are not already there, and look in my pack for the labelled flask of Mandragora potion to restore them"

"Yessir!" the girls said, dropped a curtsey and ran off.

"What's all this curtseying lark?" Hilda muttered to Senagra

Others strained to hear.

"Oh it's a means of expressing our respect to the Headmaster or – temporarily – Headmistress" said Senagra, loud enough for straining ears to hear; Severus would permit that. "And boys bow. It's like rising when a Professor comes into the room; common courtesy, to show we're not oiks."

This was a new concept!

Severus surveyed the girls, half scared of him with his grim, scarred visage; he gave a small smile.

"Good er, morning girls" he said "I am sorry you have been taken away from your beauty sleep; you will all be permitted to sleep in tomorrow and the castle elves will run a buffet breakfast for you as you emerge; uniform will also be relaxed tomorrow if you wish to breakfast in pyjamas and go back to bed for an hour or two as this is an unusual alarum and excursion. We are hoping that your Professors will be restored to you unharmed by Monday, when the rules will return to being tight again; in the meantime let me introduce your new Professors. I will be teaching potions in addition to being Headmaster and I will take senior Chanting. My wife Madam Malfoy-Snape, who answers to Madam Malfoy in school, will be teaching Transfiguration and Arithmancy; Madam Parnassus will teach Charms; Professor Snape Von Strang will teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, a skill in which you are all SADLY lacking; Professor Fraser will teach Care of Magical Beasts and will teach Quidditch until you current PT mistress feels able to take that over; he is a national referee and expects to take his International test next year so you are privileged; he is also one of the few people in the World to hold an 'O' grade NEWT in Care of Magical beasts. Naturally all the new staff hold 'O' grade at NEWT in the subjects they are teaching and most cannot hold higher because one cannot score above one hundred percent. Professor Fraser's wife will answer to Professor Devlin and will teach Herbology – which you know as Botany and do not at present study as more than a theory subject. I understand you already have a chanting mistress and a Divination mistress and an elderly gentleman who teaches a combination of charms, transfiguration and enchanting under the catchall title of Spells and Enchantments. It is not good enough if you wish to achieve any kind of academic excellence. I am aware that many of you belong to wealthy families who do not need qualifications in order to survive; but nature has given you brains and wasting them is rather insulting to nature. I know it will be hard for the older girls here; but I expect you to work hard to catch up to a national average standard as far as you can. I will accept applications from the oldest to remain a year longer than normal if you wish to pursue subjects you have not previously covered. Madam Hardbroom has agreed to return to Hogwarts and take over my teaching post there; she will be returning shortly with the younger members of the group and those I borrowed. Cocoa is on its way now; when you have drunk it I want you to return quietly to bed. I will not insist you clean your teeth again; I would rather you fell asleep than woke yourselves up with cold water and scrubbing. Indeed, this once, I will permit you to take your mugs of cocoa to bed with you on the proviso that the mugs are returned to the kitchen when you rise tomorrow. Or rather, later today. I will say good night now; I still have things to sort out, Madam Parnassus will be here to supervise."

He inclined his head and strode out.

Myrtle had sent a summons.

Myrtle had a prisoner.

"He's a werewolf" she said "He had control as it's not full moon and he turned back and said he would not fight a pregnant woman or indeed any woman."

Myrtle did not show yet; but was well aware that the preternaturally sharp nose of a werewolf would easily discern her condition.

Severus turned a look of some respect on the scar-faced werewolf, who had a great gash down one side of the face.

"I didn't know there were any gentlemen left in Odessa" he said.

The man shrugged.

"I have my honour" he said. "We were plainly defeated; and I would not fight someone who should be protected. She says she is here to protect the little girls in the castle; what was in the castle I had no idea, my unit was moved here as guards to attack when we were told to attack. Have you killed all my men?"

"Yes" said Severus "We've had experience of Odessa Werewolves before; they are generally as brutal as one of their progenitors, Fenrir Greyback."

The prisoner's eyes flared.

"Yes, he made me; and left this scar" he said "I was thirteen. But Odessa offered a haven; and also for muggle werewolves when I suggested it."

"There are muggle werewolves?" Severus was horrified.

"Yes; my wife was one such" there was a brief softness in his face. "And there are more than….anyway, my name is Hauptmann Wolf Luytens and I led the wolf troupe."

Severus saw in his eyes the guilt of having suggested to his recruiter that they might protect and use muggle werewolves too that had led to the wholesale biting of muggles to swell the ranks; read too how he feared for his little daughter, safe for now but who knew what might happen….the tale was there of true love for his muggle werewolf wife and her death in childbirth, leaving their baby the sun and moon of her father's existence.

"You could always change sides you know" said Severus "We do not despise werewolves out of hand; it is Odessa we despise. One of my best friends was a werewolf until I developed the cure."

"There is a cure? But I thought…."

"It is still very raw; the pain is like taking the cruciatus curse for minutes at a time."

"Huh, anyone but a fool would accept that exchange! But I will not change coat; I pledged my loyalty. And loyal I will remain. I am your prisoner and of myself I will speak freely but of my Prince and any military matters I will not speak."

"The cure I offer you freely whether you will change sides or no" said Severus "If you wish it."

"Oh yes, I wish it" said Luytens "But I will not speak out of gratitude for it; nor will the pain of it induce me to speak either. I made my choice; and I will not betray."

"Then I honour you for that; but you must remain my prisoner" said Severus "I will fetch the cure and then you will be confined in this dungeon room indefinitely."

Wolf Luytens clicked his heels.

"My parole ends in four hours" he said "I gave it to dawn."

"Your honour impresses me" said Severus.

Luytens screamed as the injection took hold of him, shaking his body with agony as he cycled back and forth between man and wolf; and Severus, unable to bear it, laid a hand on him and drew the pain onto himself, sharing it out through those that reached to him willingly.

At last the ex werewolf collapsed on the floor still shivering slightly.

"You shared the pain with me" he said, his voice hoarse.

"I don't like hurting people" said Severus "Especially a brave man. I had enough of seeing agony under Voldemort's twisted rule; and I'm sorry the potion is not yet good enough to cut that out. I have limited subjects willing to be experimented on. This one was supposed to be improved; but perhaps you have been a werewolf for some time."

"Since the second muggle world war" said Luytens. "We don't age as fast as humans. Well I guess I will now; and that's an exchange I'll take any time."

"What can you tell me about your family?" said Severus "I could perhaps contact them."

"No! I'm not being caught that way" said Luytens "No more information."

"As you wish" said Severus "I will come to see you from time to time; if you change your mind you have only to say. You are the best man in Odessa I have ever met; it makes me hope that there are others as honourable."

Jade meanwhile had introduced Harry Potter to Hester Figg as promised; and Hester turned shy and then blurted out a request for Harry's autograph. Harry laughed and provided it.

"Your great aunt did a great job looking after me" he said "It must have been hard for her; Dumbledore told her not to make the time I spent with her enjoyable in case the Dursleys stopped me seeing her. Figgy's a good friend."

Hester was delighted!

There was one more job to do once the main clearing up was done outside; and that David was in charge of, summoning bullets, not merely to hide the agency of the deaths of the werewolves but also to reuse the precious silver. _Accio silver nitrate_ and a flask had also worked when the werewolves had backed up the huorns and that too could be repeated. There was some wastage of course; but a substantial amount could be recovered. And that brought a brief danger; one werewolf was not quite dead and the removal of the allergen had him leaping at David with hate-filled eyes.

David absently backflipped out of the way. Werewolves were resistant to magic in wolf form and David had handed in his gun; and was out of sight of Romulus on overwatch. A tricky little problem easily cured by casting _diffindo _ out of the corner of his eye on the yew tree there so it fell on the hapless werewolf; whilst apparating out of the range of its branches.

David returned down the slope quickly as the tree fell with a rending groan and crash; he would not leave any creature helpless and hurt.

The werewolf was however quite dead, impaled by a branch as well as having a broken back. Yew was a strongly magical wand wood; and overcame the resistance to normal weapons.

The body would be burned with the others and David apparated it out to levitate to the pyre they were building. There would be no evidence a fight had taken place by the morning.

And he would be a professor here on Monday.

He had enjoyed teaching for the last year at Rowan House; and had not been entirely sure that his talents were not wasted on a bunch of spoilt and possibly stuck up little girls who were purposely sent to an all girls school; and who were sent out of the country by terrified parents afraid of the fact that Hogwarts had been the centre of the fight against Voldemort. Such precious poppets were, to David's mind better for being ignored once rescued from this intolerable predicament, or else integrated into a proper school like Hogwarts.

Severus had however mustered some fairly cogent arguments.

It placed them bang in the middle of Odessa territory, in influence at least, for ease of striking at the organisation; it gave European witches and wizards another school to opt for other than Durmstrang and the dubious achievements of Beauxbatons which produced polite witches and wizards of limited skill; and it stole the hearts and minds of those rich and mildly influential young witches to reach further. It was also a place to which Germanic goblins and muggleborn might go. It would continue to teach along English lines; and Ellie had giggled and said it would be a kind of wizarding Chalet School and would they spend days speaking different languages? To which Severus had looked far too thoughtful and declared that he would see about that.

To help out foreign talents who would not otherwise receive the education they deserved David was willing to give up Rowan House, since Vladimir Malfoy was happy to teach care of Magical Beasts as well as muggle Biology. And Ellie had been undecided if she wished to teach or not. Teaching in a boarding school and living in together was a different proposition to teaching the free school which might not at first show respect to a half breed like Ellie.

They would always be a target for Odessa of course.

Well, it concentrated them onto an excellent killing ground.

There would need to be much to do to bring the place up to date; a rail link for one and a decent cable car run on good old fashioned water power and goblin clockwork; or steam. Either would do.

That could be added in due course!

There was the clearup to complete for now.

And Gerhardt Grindelwald's body was not amongst the slain; so one must assume he had got away and that Odessa might now know about guns.

Back in the castle, Miss Hardbroom and Severus were administering mandragora potion to four disconsolate looking frogs.

They quickly returned to their natural forms, three women ranging from early middle age to the thoroughly decrepit; and one old man.

"Oh Miss Hardbroom!" wept the merely old woman "She threatened to kill us! That WASN'T Miss Cackle, she did it again like she did it before when Mildred Hubble turned her into a snail!"

"The Hubbles are talented transfigurationists even if they can't brew a potion to save their lives" said Connie "This is my nephew Severus Snape; he is now headmaster here."

"Oooh!" said Miss Bat the oldest, and passed out.

"I didn't realise my appearance drove women that wild" said Severus mildly. "Mr Blossom; I hear you like research. I intend to make you my pensioner. You may have a turret for your own use and experiment to your heart's desire. I have other teachers available to take your classes. Miss Drill, how come you miss out teaching Quidditch?"

"Miss Cackle thought it unladylike" said Miss Drill crisply. "I don't know how to play it myself; I was a student here in Miss Cackle's mother's time."

"If you wish to retain your post I shall expect you to learn and to teach it" said Severus crisply "My ward is an accredited referee; he will be taking lessons for now and you may learn from him so he can go back to teaching only one subject."

"Yes Professor, if you wish" said Miss Drill "At least, I'll try. It looks such fun" she added wistfully.

She'd do fine.

Miss Bat had come round; largely because Connie had emptied a vase of water on her.

"Miss Bat" said Severus "In view of your age I wish to relieve you of senior chanting classes to help you out; I will take those myself. I cannot offer you retirement for another year or so until I can replace you; I am sorry. But I will see you well cared for when I can find a replacement. Miss Gimlet; are you a seer?"

"Not as such" said the Divination mistress "I am skilled with a crystal ball and I sometimes KNOW things; it's not reliable."

She sounded quite no-nonsense.

"Well so long as you are aware of its unreliability and teach that I have no problems" said Severus "I would like you to add dowsing to your curriculum; we have discovered that there are sometimes some quite competent dowsers of one or more materials in those who are otherwise hopeless diviners, and it's worth while developing. Write to Rosemary Spikenard at Hogwarts too; she's had some good ideas to develop practical skills in her pupils, for all diviners are different."

Miss Gimlet brightened. She was used to her subject being treated as a bit of a laugh and the concept of being given a bit of respect – and the tacit option to experiment – was exciting!

Neither Miss Gimlet nor Miss Drill said anything but each was experiencing a guilty pang that things might actually be improved by Miss Cackle's death and her replacement with this grim but flexible Professor!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

It seemed almost anticlimactic to be back at school for the Prowling Marauders.

"It'll be weird without Professor Snape" said Lynx.

"Yes; and I'm in the same boat as everyone else away from my parents for the first time" said Jade "It's both an immense sense of freedom and kind of hollowish inside."

"That's the way most weevils feel for the first week or so" said Lynx "It wears off. Still, the amount of trouble you've always managed to get in, nobody could ever accuse you of being teacher's pet! We need to help Connie settle in."

Jade was now in the fifth alongside Lynx, Senagra and Fabian; having been moved up by Dumbledore on her return to school. Severus had asked the group if they would be prepared to transfer to Miss Cackle's after their OWLs to be a cadre in the sixth for him.

"Only if you change the name" said cheeky Lynx.

"Any suggestions?" said Severus who intended a name change.

"Prinzberg School, or in plain English Prince's Peak?" suggested Lynx "It calls on your family connection and also kinda cocks a snoot at Odessa's prince. OUR Prince against theirs as you might say."

Severus laughed.

"Well I fully intend to make it MY school" he said "It's a lot less pretentious than 'the Severus Snape School' which crossed my mind, the SSS against the SS."

The Prowling Marauders grinned.

"That too has its charms" said Fabian "But if you should hand over to someone else to return to Hogwarts any time, Prince Peak – and I think that works better than with the possessive – is still a good name, honouring the founder like out Houses but not tied so closely."

"Are we going to have a basilisk?" said Senagra.

Severus cuffed her gently.

"That reminds me, a trick I wanted to pull, I need to see Gorbrin about it…." Said Jade.

"I don't want to know" said Severus hastily.

Back in England Jade promptly instituted her idea, saving boiled egg shells from the breakfast table and borrowing Gorbrin's toad Terence, whom she arranged over the broken shells in the DADA classroom and a Swooping Curser programmed with a rhyme in Parseltongue and confined in a box, inside an embroidered sock, singing,

"hissy hissy little snakey

do not get upset

I'm a bigger snake then you

I am Salazar's pet".

When Remus Lupin opened the classroom and found a toad with eggshells and heard Parseltongue he had a sudden shock; until he realised that no basilisk was going to be that flippant and that there were still cooked egg stains on some of the shells.

And the toad was still alive.

He opened the box and up rose the swooping curser, trailing its sock body.

There was a note in the box.

"Borrowed Gorbrin's toad but he doesn't know why, hope it gave you a giggle, Jade."

It almost had to be.

Jade was one of the few people who would sign her name to her own misdeeds.

Remus took Gorbrin's toad back to him, affectionately followed by the sock basilisk whose little wings projected from neatly cut holes and attention distracted from them by a beautiful crest made of dyed ostrich feather.

It took several days for the mechanism to run down; and Remus chose merely to ignore it.

It was Jade's way of dealing with the horrendous risks they all took.

The Prowling Marauders also volunteered their services to Madam Hardbroom as they knew where pretty much everything was in the Potions' dungeon and understood Severus' cataloguing system in case she wanted to rearrange it along her own lines.

On the whole, Connie approved of Severus' way of filing, though she did place Boomslang skin back under 'B' instead of under 'P' for 'Pesky brats, not for the use of' where Severus had placed it in the hopes of avoiding too many thefts for illicit identity thefts.

She also questioned the four on their own knowledge to give her some idea of what OWL students here were expected to know.

She was amazed to find their knowledge and background understanding so deep, and their appreciation of arithmancy and even the application of arithmancy in gathering and preparing ingredients.

"I've always admired Severus Snape his brilliance, from having read his articles in 'Transactions' she admitted, unwilling to call him just Severus to students "Do you know why, for I've always wondered, he should remain teaching when he could have had a brilliant career?"

"He has had a brilliant career!" said Jade indignantly "Apart from all the potioneers he's given to the world he's been Harry's bodyguard and that counts for more than anything!"

Connie blinked at such vehemence.

"I thought Professor Dumbledore protected Harry Potter."

"Dad was there for him because Dad loved Harry's mum when they were at school" said Jade "And pledged himself to protect her son though she chose another man to marry. He could only do that in school with him. And he was undercover having to be a deatheater and pretending he was watching Harry for Fishface – what we called Voldemort here – and he had to be real mean to him outside. Besides, he brews the potions he needs to, he has enough free time, well he did before he was a headmaster. Just being a potioneer's a bit selfish, isn't it, because anything you invent isn't passed on so far as when you teach it. And the best students get his best recipes to use too."

"He really is a dedicated potioneer then" said Connie. "He's better than I am."

"Well don't worry Madam Hardbroom, because only a handful of us are good enough to notice the difference" said Senagra "And that's about three in each year on average. And only Jade's really any good out of us four really; we just learn more because we get to listen to her sound off. The geniuses are the Moorcroft Twins in the fourth and Nig Clough in the same year is good; Lydia, Jade's sister in the third and Gorbrin Malfoy-Tobak and Ming Chang in the second. Lionel Dell works like the clappers but he does it all by sheer hard work. And of course your cousins, Pete and Callum in the sixth, I think several of them are pretty good. Anyone with 'Weasley' anywhere in the name is likely to be accident prone and that goes for 'Crouch Jones' too."

"Rather like 'Hubble'" said Connie "Though when I think what her mother was like, I'm delighted and amazed by young Maud."

Maud's voice suddenly and uncannily floated at that moment into the dungeon.

"I'm peering into the darkness in the hopes of seeing a light!" it boomed.

"Oh really!" said Jade "They're mucking about in the chimneys; Lynx, set her a prefect's impot will ya?" they CAN'T be allowed to get away with that and no need to make it official, is there, Aunt Connie?"

Lynx stuck her head up the chimney casting _sonorous_ to carry her voice up.

"I'm also looking into the darkness in the expectation of seeing a weevil, Miss Langstaff! You may write me four repetitions of 'Sally go round the moon' as you are so fond yourself of going round the chimney pots on a Sunday afternoon and you'd better be clean next time I see you too."

"Oh RATS!" said the disembodied voice.

Lynx emerged laughing.

"Little idiot, howling down the chimney like that! WE never did anything that stupid when we were exploring the roofs!"

"You do not expect me to call them down and forbid them the roofs?" said Connie.

"Oh! No, it's all part of learning risk taking" said Jade airily "And if they are the next generation of Marauders they'll need to know that; we don't wrap the kids at Hogwarts in cotton wool, Aunt Connie. They're not precious poppets like those space wasters you've been teaching up til now. If they can't hack that they needn't get in mischief. Getting caught means you get punished, sometimes quite hard; but that's part of the ethos, you take your punishment without complaint because you pay for your fun. Remus Lupin gave me a couple of stripes across the hand for scaring him briefly with a joke I played on him yesterday because he couldn't be bothered to think of a more creative impot and told me to clear up the eggshells without wand. I didn't mean to scare him even briefly so as I had it was only fair. I'll remember not to be thoughtless 'cos it smarts a bit. All fair."

"I think it will take me a while to settle in" said Connie "I have always been reckoned stern but I believe some of the detentions considered normal here are harsh even from my point of view. Gutting horned toads for example."

"Oh that's normally for the wilful numbskull" said Fabian "People who muck about or make a mess of potions when they COULD learn if they only applied themselves. Krait Malfoy once had a girl dissecting Salamanders without gloves for wilfully burning another girl, or so legend goes; it's reckoned appropriate to make the punishment fit the crime and in line with the severity. Written impots are the rule most of the time; either lines appropriate or reps of a quote or poem that fits the subject. Prefects can give ten reps, that's normally ten of 'I must remember to act my age not my shoesize' or similar, but if it's bad mischief you can get creative with poetry rather than make something official. Sometimes jumping on trouble at a prefect level can make someone wise up without reporting it and making them liable for serious punishment that might make them resentful, stroppy and even worse. Prevention's always better than cure, and you see we've had so many children of Deatheaters through school who do REAL damage – trying to hurt muggleborn or goblins, say, and I mean HURT not just jinx – and that's a far cry from mischief like exploring the roofs. Unofficially, harmless mischief is sanctioned as a means of teaching initiative and preparing the next generation of warriors against evil. There's a different product comes out of Hogwarts to what came out of Miss Cackle's; she produced genteel young ladies who could brew a few potions and cast a few charms such as were suitable around the house of a chinless and rich husband. We turn out Aurors and hit wizards and warriors in amongst the ordinary urks who just work in the ministry or sell brooms for a living. It's the ones who get into mischief who are the high fliers of tomorrow; and they need to be pushed and developed to their peak. People like Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, David Fraser, The Malfoy Twins and co, Lionel Dell – and us."

"Back at Miss Cackle's the direct way you have of talking would be insolent. But none of Miss Cackle's girls would have managed what you did."

"We are the Marauders; we do what is necessary" said Lynx "We have fun too, and get into trouble; it's part of the process of learning."

"Not that we've actually got into that much trouble" said Jade "Maybe we ought to before we have to settle down as staid Sixths."

"Madam Hardbroom doesn't want to know" said Senagra demurely "At least, that's what Severus always says, and then he groans and clutches his head and mutters 'why me?'."

Jade poked her.

It was much for Connie to ponder on.

No-one had many days to ponder.

James Potter had demanded a portrait in Gryffindor House as well to alert people quickly if there was trouble; and it was well that he had.

It was Lydia he saw first.

"Oy! Snape junior!" he called.

Lydia beamed at him.

"Yes, Prongs?" she said

"Get people together; we have trouble in the forest…..damn, I'm never going to get used to this!" as bloodgroup members started apparating in.

"Keep your antlers on" said Sirius "Forest incursions?"

"Damn right" said James "Erklings, millions of the little bastards!"

Sirius apparated away with a startled cry to start ringing the big bell used in case of fire or other emergency.

Lydia lifted the portrait down to take with her as they evacuated obediently.

Dumbledore joined Sirius in front of the castle as everyone started assembling.

"What is it?"

"Erklings" said Sirius tensely "Ah, Hilary, have you all your charges?"

"Yes, counted and correct" said Hilary Arbuckle in charge of the infants of the orphanage.

"Good take them into the castle – not your house – and organise games with them in the great hall, someone with them at ALL times" said Sirius "I think all but the warts and weevils are too young to be attracted, Albus, but the babes….." as his own babies were amongst those left with Hilary his fear was personal, though the numbers had dropped with Krait and Severus removing their own smaller offspring to the other school. "Hagrid! Get Alice and her babes up into the crèche NOW, Erklings!" he said as Hagrid came up to the school to see what the fuss was about.

Hagrid paled and started off at a run.

"Nothing yet, Hagrid; no blood call" Lionel said softly as he passed "We're standing by; just bring her up here."

Hagrid nodded and kept going.

Sirius' voice reached everyone.

"Check all of your year and your house are present please and then go back to your classrooms except those who are in the MSHG over the age of thirteen. If anyone is missing tell me quickly. For you older ones this is just so much target practice; any disobedient youngsters will be punished severely; we have an incursion of erklings, and for those of you who don't know what they are, they attract and eat children, a somewhat harsher detention than any of the staff are wont to set. Animagi to me; we go hunting."

Bella and co lingered as long as they could to watch the animagi change.

"Gosh, isn't Professor Khan FLUFFY!" she breathed "He's gorgeous!"

"Come on hurry up you naughty children!" Madam Hardbroon hurried them in.

Bella was dreaming of being a tiger animagus one day.

Erklings reached about three foot in height and were fey creatures whose cackling laughter was irresistible to children, whom they ate once they had captured them. The last recorded Erkling attack was recorded by Newt Scamander in his book when six-year-old Bruno Schmidt brained one with his father's collapsible cauldron. German Ministry officials had strict controls on them.

Young Herr Schmidt would be about thirty now; Lionel wondered in passing if he was pro or anti Odessa.

As all the Prowling Marauders and original and honorary Marauders were animgi, Lionel found the portrait of James Potter in his care busy directing things.

"You're Slytherin" said James accusingly.

"True; it's part of my charm" said Lionel "Along with my good looks and infinite resource and sagacity and capacity for getting into trouble."

James grinned.

"You'll do" he said "You modern Slytherin – Scales's Slytherin I suppose – are a far cry from those of my time."

"Some good examples as well as our own personal perfections I suppose" said Lionel. "I shout at people while you trot from picture to picture do I?"

"More or less" said James.

It was wand practice; the animagi went ahead and soon the screams of erklings echoed, savaged by one tiger, two wolves – Nymphadora joined her husband - a big black dog, a lynx, a big owl backed up by a falcon, both of whom spotted for the others and a large rock python. Madam McGonagall felt she was more use undertaking wand work than as a tabby cat.

Especially by comparison to the two larger cats.

Lionel directed his people round to the dead space to catch the creatures between two fires.

The handsome blonde wizard started and cried out as several grim faced sixth formers appeared out of the trees wands at the ready.

His protection spells held long enough for him to part what appeared to be an invisible curtain and disappear.

"Do NOT follow!" yelled Lionel "Mark that place and remember it but do not follow, we do not know what is on the other side!"

They flanked it and waited ready in case anyone else came through.

"Was that Gerhardt himself?" asked Mary-Anne.

"I believe so" said Lionel "I've seen a picture of Gellert Grindelwald in the article Krait had to write about Dumbledore for Voldemort; he's enough like it to be a grandson. I never saw him in Austria; he skedaddled too quick."

"Good at that, ain't he?" said Cynner.

"Dead martyrs are all very well but they don't make very good figureheads" said Lionel "He's good enough to know when he isn't good enough. And that must make him sore, especially being seen off by a pack of kids like us."

"But he didn't see a pack of kids, Lionel" said Callum dreamily in the tone of voice they knew usually meant he saw more than most. "He saw a group of competent looking witches and wizards protecting the school and he wondered if we're hiding the scars. We're not children to him but scary warriors."

"I like that" said Cynner.

"What about us goblins?" said Arjelan "They despise us, don't they?"

"Not when you look like you know what to do" said Callum "He thinks you're the advance guard of an army of goblin sturmtruupen – that's stormtroopers, isn't it?. And that's all I got" he added in a more ordinary voice.

Then there were fleeing erklings, caught between two fires; and Lionel's group were busy using the blasting curse that was enough to kill such small creatures.

"They look like a cross between garden gnomes and house elves" remarked Tamsin.

"They look like boggarts only muddyish skin coloured" said Jade Snape wriggling into human form as she drove a pack of screaming erklings onto the wands of Dell's group.

"Oh yes, you see boggarts for real, don't you Jade" said Freya Tuthill "That's really rather interesting, are you going to write a thesis about it for your DADA NEWT?"

"Hadn't thought of it but it's not a half bad idea" said Jade "Tuthill, only you would think of academic crap at a time like this! You're quite as bad as Hermione Granger!"

"Don't bother – she'll take that as a compliment" grinned Freya's brother Ross.

Lionel showed Jade where they had seen the curtain. Jade went invisible – a neat trick for a NEWT level charms student and not generally to be expected of a witch of fourteen years old – and slipped through. At least, Lionel and co had to assume she had slipped through as she had disappeared.

The trees wavered slightly; and then Jade was among them again.

"See anything when I came and went?" she asked laconically.

"There was a wavering like heat haze" said Lionel.

"You'll recognise that again, won't you Prongs?" said Jade to James.

"I will. They know now that we know where they come in" said James. "They too might use invisibility next time."

"Well I have a great idea to solve THAT" said Ross Tuthill "Claymore mines! Pressure sensitive, and also ones set off with fine lines like on 'Where Eagles Dare' at broom flying height in case they fly in not walk!"

"And that makes you Fraser's successor in creative muggle destruction" said Jade approvingly.

"What did you see?" said Lionel "We thought we'd better not follow him in case of capture if he had a load of backup."

"There's a dead place like this one and I could see a kind of woodsman's hut through the trees that I think they use as an HQ" said Jade "There'd been a lot of tramping past it and vegetation had been heavily disturbed which was what allowed me to see through to the hut; very sloppy. Gaafi sticks, Bantha tracks…."

"Wheras real Tusken Raiders go single file to hide their numbers" grinned Ross. "Not as precise as Imperial Stormtroopers then?"

"No; just too arrogant" said Jade disgustedly. "Time to send our dogs in perhaps?"

Sirius had just bounded into the clearing and Jade hastily outlined what had been discovered to him.

Sirius slapped her hard across the backside; considered and repeated.

"Going off without letting anyone know? What is your father going to do to me if he finds out I let you nip off to the Black Forest or wherever?"

"But Lionel and co knew" said Jade "And I CAN apparate anywhere. Dad would expect me to gather intelligence even in the heart of enemy territory; it's what Snapes do. Jiminey Christmas, why don't I go to Durmstrang and infiltrate that way?"

"Because your sense of right and wrong is too Gryffindor inside that Slytherin head of yours and you'd start righting wrongs and depressing the oppressors" said Sirius.

"I knew there was a reason I don't always like you Padfoot" said Jade "Being right all the time is a very unattractive feature, you know?"

"Funny; it's usually me saying something along those lines to your mother" said Sirius, hugging her fiercely. "I love all you kids to bits; you're my BROTHER's children."

"Sirius I take OWLs this year" said Jade quietly "Even though it is a year young. I'm the same age Harry was when he did the Triwizard. Are we having a quadwizard next time so I can take part from Prince Peak?"

"I don't know. Dammit, Jade, when you're trying to protect Regulus and Denebola you'll understand!"

"I guess. Are they all dead? There weren't any in reserve the other end and Gerhardt had high-tailed it. Probably to a place of concealment to see if we DID try to follow him. I crawled through that the way on elbows to disturb it as little as possible as well as being invisible. And now you're our adult you need to get the things Ross and Grigs will talk to you about to blow them up if they come in invisible."

And the two bloodgroups convened in Myrtle's loo for a council of war.

Sirius began making contacts with some well confunded arms dealers.

And school life went back to normal, adapting to a new Potions Mistress with some wariness and the general opinion that she was just a female specie of Professor Snape so it made little difference.

The person who kicked up the most fuss was Amiya Green who missed her lessons in chanting and magical music theory. Anyone would think that Professor Snape had gone to rescue some children from a group of dark wizards as a personal slight to her.

"It's the trouble with Ravenclaws – lots of them anyway" said Tamsin "- present company excepted" for Pearl Brocklehurst met with the rest of the group "This descent from normal person into spoilt brat with I – want lines developing like a querulous baby that's lost its comforter."

"I told her to write to him for instructions" said Lionel "Whether she will or not or whether she's going to throw a massive fit of the sulks depends on whether she was more interested in the learning or her status as special pupil. I wrote and asked him what books HE'd used so we could teach ourselves; and I got a list by return of owl."

"He appreciates those who're ready to learn" said Ross. "How are you getting on with Madam Hardbroom?"

"Quite well; she's not as tough on one as Severus nor quite so good at making you see your own mistakes, but Pete's being Snapish at me because I asked him to. Callum's too much of a Gooder to do Snapisms" said Lionel.

Callum grinned lazily.

"I'll be rude about your potions if you like Lion" he said "If I think of it. You'll be fine, just imagine what cousin Severus would say if it goes wrong."

"Along the lines of asking what is this turgid and cacaceous effluvium, Mr Dell" said Lionel.

"Unwholesome concatenation" said Callum.

"Excrescent detritus of turbidity" suggested Cynner who had received her fair share of criticism on potions from Severus in the past.

"And so on" grinned Grigs.

Amiya Green did send a request for help to Professor Snape; she had hoped he would send her weekly lesson plans, but had to be content with a list of books and a suggested rate of reading them.

It was not Amiya's idea of very helpful; and Professor Flitwick had to deal with a disgraceful scene that could almost be described as a temper tantrum most lowering to a girl who was head of house!

As she had thrown the letter in the grate in her paddy, and Mei Chang managed to retrieve it with only minimal burns to herself before it caught alight the Mad Marauders took it as their spoils of war and decided that they instead might benefit from Professor Snape's pearls of wisdom.

His chanting was really remarkably effective after all; and they were not unmusical even if only Lydia could be truly described as musical. And as she said, her father was NOT musical, he just understood enough theory to make the music of others more effective.

Other Owls brought news of greater or lesser moment to those who received them.

Pris Lockhart received a formal marriage proposal from Prince Victor Von Mensch und Eberhardt of Belsornia; and she spent the rest of the week utterly useless to anyone for being in a world of her own.

Gorbrin, Erica, Griselen and Genavka and Bella received a joint letter from Lucius telling them that he had a new page-cum-valet.

There was a youth who was half house elf and half fey, from a raped mother, who had been forcibly taken by the fey from his mistress at the age of eight, when she was made to give him clothes, and he was dragged off to enter a more profound slavery at the hands of the HighFey, though technically free; the blood ritual that had released the compulsions also enabled this youth to travel with other oppressed free elves to the land Lucius granted them, but he complained they were a feckless lot and he wanted real work. His previous mistress had died and he believed his mother was at Hogwarts as a free elf.

Lucius described his new page as about fourteen, blue skinned, a little larger than a standard house elf, four foot six or seven, with Malfoy-blonde hair and huge blue eyes, renamed something unpronounceable by the Unseelie Court and answering to Finn, but unable to remember his previous name. He asked his children to see if they could find the boy's mother to reassure her of her offspring's safety and find out his name. He also wrote that he had offered Finn Hogwarts; but had been turned down on grounds of them having enough to cope with taking on goblins and elves without one blue-skinned individual, and that besides it was full of kids and it would be hard to cope with them.

"You, Gorbrin, particularly understand that" Lucius wrote "Having been the man of the house and having your childhood robbed; but you are four maybe five years younger and more adaptable therefore. Also you are one of several goblins; being a total odd man out AND seeing his fellows as childish I can see why Finn has asked me to teach him as he needs and let him read. He is a quaint child and I fancy you will find I treat him as one of the family not a servant when you return."

Gorbrin rapidly tracked down an elf with a child answering that description and a story that tallied in all particulars; save one.

The child was a girl and her name was Linny.

Gorbrin duly wrote back with this information, telling his father that the mother, Lissy, believed that 'those de'ils o' te hunt' had brainwashed Linny into thinking she was a boy.

Gorbrin strongly suspected, and said, that knowing what had happened to her mother, Linny had decided to hide her sex deliberately to avoid unwelcome attentions.

It was up to Lucius to decide what to do; but Gorbrin suspected he would tactfully pretend not to know.

After all, she had sought his protection; and by the way Lucius wrote enjoyed helping him play games at social gatherings by being liveried and yet more subservient than an enslaved elf.

He grinned.

Lucius was a poseur; a liveried elf bowing and scraping to him and treating all other wizards with sneering disdain would tickle his sense of the dramatic. If it also amused this girl – a new sister to them one day perhaps? – then all was good.

Lucius was wonderful but he could be such flamboyant bastard!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Gerhardt did not send any more troops or creatures through; and Lionel hoped he had given up the whole idea as a bad job. And though Transfigurations was not his strongest suit he was certainly toying with the concept seeing the flexibility it gave if you were an animagus.. He discussed it with his own group first, meeting in the Hagrids' new big cottage.

"If we ask Sirius Black to help us I think it would be a good idea" said Mary-Anne.

Lionel was startled.

"I wasn't suggesting anyone need join me" he said.

"Lionel, dear, Arjelan and Melody and I are your women" said Mary-Anne calmly "Well, aren't we? We're all prepared to share him."

The other two nodded.

"I'm good at transfigurations anyway" said Melody "Arjelan's no slouch. But I think we should TELL Professor Black and if he wants to offer advice, take it; otherwise just get on and do it. It's better if it comes from within if you ask me, not told how."

"I'd take your advice on that as I'd take Cal's or Arjelan's on Potions or Rubeus' on animals" said Lionel.

"I don't want to go that route" said Callum "Do you mind?"

"Not at all. Hey, not all the main blood group are animagi, are they? It's just another dimension to what we are as a whole."

"What form had you decided on?" asked Freya

"Well some of you shorten me to Lion" said Lionel "And that seemed to be a guiding light as it were."

Melody nodded.

"What feels right usually is right" she said "I don't know about you girls, but other cats or lions seem kind of right to me."

"I could fancy being a lioness" said Mary-Anne.

"Mm, I'd like to be a black panther" said Arjelan.

"Near enough" said Melody "Yes, a lioness would be nice; in a way, Arjelan, that has symmetry in that you'd be a different race – slightly – in your animagus form. Some differences if not many."

Arjelan grinned.

"Maybe it's just because I'm awkward" she said.

Ross and Heather were exchanging looks.

"Ross and me might join you in the future" said Heather; "but we're not ready yet."

"Likewise Grigs and me" said Cholaka.

"That's all cool" said Lionel. "Right; we know what we want; shall we talk to Professor Black?"

Sirius listened gravely.

"Yes, I can see you're making choices for the right reasons" he said. "We all transformed without supervision or help but we were a bunch of damned young fools. I'll let you find your own way to your forms but when you're ready I'd like to be present when you change. Be aware too that your sense of smell will be enhanced; it will increase the er, instincts that are part of the attraction between you. I think Professor Dumbledore would like a year without people giving him kittens, in your cases fairly literally."

They all blushed; none could say they had not experienced urges and indeed Lionel had not kept to chaste kisses with his ladies though they had progressed no further than passionate kisses with a degree of groping.

"I brewed some contraceptive potion in case we get that far" said Arjelan then went bright red.

"Prudent" said Sirius ignoring the blush "I'm glad you're prepared; if you can't be good be prepared and I'm a fine one to talk getting Willow pregnant last October, but in theory don't do as I do, do as I suggest. Besides you older ones have two years left not one and Arjelan a good deal more."

"We're all going to wait until Arjelan's of age" said Lionel firmly. "Otherwise it's not fair."

Sirius believed him.

Lionel Dell had a will of iron and a strong sense of justice.

And so another group of Animagi formed as part of the school defences; and hoped not to be needed.

And the time was approaching again for the Yule Ball.

Apart from Freya Lionel's group was sorted out; even if that involved Lionel taking three girls. Freya decided to ask Roger Weasley in the end as he was too shy to ask anyone as they had to go and being friendly enough. On that basis, Roger accepted.

The rest of the fourth grumbled as usual.

Jade, now in the fifth decided to go with Fabian as Marauders should stick together; Lynx asked her brother, who said,

"Yuk, no thanks, I already turned Mei down, not doing that soppy stuff until I have to!" so she asked and was accepted by Ed Dinalt instead. Senagra came to an arrangement with Jem Ingate, a ward of Severus' who was to go to Prince Peak with them; as was Tala Ulwin. She went with her Erich's brother Erwin.

The fourth year Slytherin paired off with Seag taking Dimsie, Aurelia going with Godfrey Goodchild and Harmony with Gerald Purbeck. Mei settled for Mike Orde who was at least in her gang.

Erica Malfoy had a bit of a shock.

As a second year, so far as she was concerned the Yule Ball was nothing to do with her.

When Achille Crouch-Villeneuve put his arm around her she froze briefly as he said,

"Hey sweetie, let's get used to a bit of groping shall we, 'cos I've chosen to take you to the Yule Ball, even though you are only a Wart. In fact I'm going to take you every year, because it'd suit me to wed a Malfoy; even a second rate one. And you get to have a pure bred husband, so you're the luckiest girl in the school!"

Erica pulled away.

"You big bullying lout!" she screamed at him – a shock since Erica never raised her voice – "How DARE you! You think I ought to think I'm lucky to be pawed over by a creep and a pervert like you? In your dreams! I'd rather marry GRAWP then you! I'm sure daddy will love to know that you consider me – and therefore presumably mummy – as second rate however, but I personally don't give a swooping curser about blood status! I don't know if it's that you want to get your hands on an underage little girl's body or if it's only my inheritance you want to paw over with your grubby French hands but you aren't getting either!"

"But consider the advantages – my family is impeccable, well off too, and we'd have been even better off if some grotty brat of a scarlet woman's hadn't been awarded Barty Crouch's inheritance!"

"Oh I see, 'grotty brat' that's how much you think of those of us with technical illegitimacy is it?" said Erica with all the sarcasm she could muster. "Veronica is entitled to her father's portion; and I'm pleased and proud it was my cousins Hawke and Abraxus who were part of arranging that! Malfoys stand for what is right! If your impeccable family is what you think is important, bugger off back to France and live with them! The Crouch-Jones family are ashamed to have part of the same name as you, and the Black-Weasleys have to live down the fact that you are their cousin! You are a dirty frog with less intellect than a tadpole and wherever you go you leave a slime trail! When you speak you might as well be farting for all the sense you make and you smell!"

"Don't you WANT to go to the Ball with me then?" said Achille sounding injured.

"Crumbs and I thought Ravenclaws were supposed to be the intellectual ones….well until you can learn to say 'da-da' and wave bye-bye let me put this in words of one syllable for your retarded intellect; GET LOST CREEP!"

Achille was very put out.

He could not understand her reaction at all; after all, although her sire acknowledged her she was only a bastard and should be flattered by his attentions. She may not have been a pure blood – which was a shame – but it would have been handy to have a Malfoy connection. And she bid fair to be a beauty when she grew up who would look well shown around as his wife. He had planned it all out! A betrothal when she was fourteen and she could leave school and marry him on her seventeenth birthday – no, sixteenth now was permissible – so she need not waste her time with NEWTs that she would never need as his wife.

She was just being a silly little girl.

Achille sent an owl to his father outlining his plans and asking him to make an arranged betrothal with Lucius Malfoy. She would come round when it was a fait accompli.

When Lucius sent an owl to Erica demanding to know what she thought by wanting to enter a betrothal at her age he received a very snippy reply to the effect that if her dad was stupid enough to undertake such a thing Achille Crouch-Jones would be greeting his illustrious ancestors beyond the veil before much longer.

Lucius grinned at that; Erica was a true Malfoy all right!

Accordingly he travelled to France – little blue page in tow to look down her tiny and delicate fey nose at the Crouch-Villeneuves – and laid M Villeneuve out.

It was not necessary; a letter of refusal would have been sufficient.

But that would not have been as much fun.

Erica meanwhile complained to Lynx, as a prefect of her house, that a boy from another house was sexually harassing her.

And that Lynx took to Madam Hardbroom unofficially.

"I wouldn't normally trouble you Madam Hardbroom but the boy is my cousin and I loathe him" she explained "And though I could jinx him into a knot it would be easy to go overboard. He has no right to try to force himself on anyone, let alone a Wart of twelve years old, but he's got this idée fixée that he's going to marry her and he's not taking no for an answer; he's too puffed up with himself to think she'd really want to refuse. And his wretched father is trying to get an arranged marriage – FRENCH you know – and it's upsetting Erica of course. Should I just give him prefect's detention or should I ask you to sort it out through Professor Flitwick? I've never even heard of anything like this happening before so I'm wholly flummoxed!"

"Well I'm glad in a way you never have heard of anything like this before; I was beginning to wonder if a co-educational school led to such occurrences!" said Connie.

"Oh no! I mean, you get people who have wandering hand trouble – so you jink them – and you get silly girls mooning after this year's eligible catch – which is Lionel this year and his three girlfriends see off any opposition so he doesn't have to bother – and you get love spats and so on, but those of us who have common sense make friends with girls and boys both and pick our partners on the basis of a good friendship that er, develops" said Lynx, blushing rosily.

"Is it inappropriate to ask who you picked?" asked Miss Hardbroom.

Lynx shook her black curls.

"Oh it's no secret! I'm unofficially betrothed to Hawke Malfoy but of course it's got to wait until I leave school, then I'll probably teach with him in the free school in Obscura Alley. Or we might take time out and be aurors for a while. We hadn't quite decided."

"A bit of difference between being a teacher and being an auror."

"Oh not really; a teacher has to be on the ball to leap on trouble before it even happens and has a tremendous responsibility to the ones under their command. And every day is different 'cos children can be pests as much as criminals. Anyway, they're both interesting jobs not something boring like being stuck in the ministry."

It was interesting to see the role of a teacher from the insights of a marauder.

Connie promised to talk to Professor Flitwick; such obdurate harassment was beyond a joke.

Filius Flitwick agreed; and Achille Crouch-Jones found himself on the mat receiving a lecture about perverts who forced their attention on children and being asked if he wanted to be expelled.

"But it wasn't LIKE that sir!" said Achille "I just thought she might as well get used to the idea as my father is going to arrange a betrothal for me with her because she'd suit me as a bride!"

"And had it occurred that you might not suit her as a husband?" squeaked little Flitwick.

Achille stared.

"What's that got to do with it?" he said "She's just a little girl, she'll get used to the idea; she'll have to comply with her father's orders."

Flitwick very rarely lost his temper.

This was one of the few times.

He verbally excoriated Achille for his medieval ideas and his stupidity of a degree that he should have been a Hufflepuff or maybe not even let into the school at all if he was so dense.

"And if Lucius Malfoy goes along with such an idea – which somehow I doubt – I will challenge him to a duel over it!" he declared. "You are loathsome and disgusting! You degrade the House by being a part of it! This had better go no further – indeed you had better never even SPEAK to Miss Malfoy again or I will expel you! Do you understand?"

"Er….no" said Achille "I've doe nothing wrong!"

"So you don't think it's wrong to disregard the wishes of others to the extent of bullying them in one of the worst ways it is possible to bully? Phaugh, you can't see it you disgusting little creature – get out of my sight, stay out of Miss Malfoy's way and maybe I shan't expel you. But SHALL write to your father about your unacceptable ideas and notions!"

And he did.

M. Villeneuve wrote to his son advising keeping a low profile as all the English were insane but at least provided a good education. There was a school in the alps now opening to boys as well as girls run on English lines; and he would make enquiries there.

It is to be said that when Severus received M. Villeneuve's letter he wrote straight back and said that all places for next year in the sixth had been filled.

They would have been filled had he had no sixth at all. Severus liked Achille about as much as Lynx did.

And after brief correspondence Flitwick assured himself that Lucius had no intention of giving any credence to the preposterous boy's preposterous ideas.

Severus meanwhile was making Prince Peak his own.

The girls were shockingly ignorant on all matters save potion making where some of them were adequate. Judging by Connie's notes she would have liked to have pushed them further but Miss Cackle had been against too much 'cruelty' to her 'gels'.

At least he could leave Connie in charge of his own dungeon with a clear conscience knowing that she would happily raise her teaching standards to suit her pupils. And at least he would not have to be too harsh to these girls to get them through a pass grade.

With so few subjects taught there were no electives; the girls had to learn Potions, Spells, Herbology and Divination with chanting as a non examination study. They took OWLs and NEWTs in Charms, Transfiguration OR enchanting according to how much talent they had shown for one side or the other in Mr Blossom's ineffective classes; and so far as Severus could gather it was a matter for rejoicing if a girl got an 'E' grade in any subject and that was only ever likely to occur in potions. With no practical experience – Miss Cackle did not like 'gels' to get their hands dirty – they rarely achieved even a pass in Herbology and that only with Connie's stringent teaching of the theory. Nobody took it to NEWT; the mandatory re-potting of a Mandrake made it ridiculous to sit a written exam when they were going to fail the practical. They had also studied History of Magic under Miss Cackle in her discursive and rather muddled style and learned less than anyone had learned from old Binns. The fact that they no longer had those lessons added to the sum total of their understanding of history.

Miss Bat was an ineffective old fool who taught chanting by rote – and a lot of good that would do – but at least it gave then knowledge of timing and cadence. Severus told the elderly teacher that she might save her own voice by setting theory exercises on the blackboard and asked if she would like to save time in preparation by using his own notes.

Miss Bat was fortunately flattered by all this consideration 'SUCH a gentleman, Professor Snape is' and duly used the notes he had assiduously prepared the moment he realised just how inept she really was.

Miss Gimlet was reasonable; not as good as Rosemary Spikenard but a sight better than Sibyl Trelawney. Not that anyone could be a lot worse. Miss Gimlet at least acknowledged that second sight was rather a hit and miss skill even with those who were talented, and she accepted a result of 'no dreams recalled' in dream diaries.

The girls were having to work harder; but on the whole there were only a few grumbles since the work they were expected to do was more interesting. Three of the small – five strong – lower sixth were prepared to work hard and try to gain extra OWLs in the new classes; and Severus promised that if they did well enough and were prepared to put in the time he would see that they took them in just one year and made up ground over the second year to at least hope for a pass at NEWT level; or even stay on an extra year. Severus had excused them chanting on grounds that it was not an exam class; and the fifth the same for studying their OWLs. Apart from the three keen ones, one of the other two of the lower sixth was so indecisive that Severus sighed and suggested she carry on working for Charms NEWT as she had been; and the other was definitely a one-skill wonder interested only in Potions and not so sure about that with a male teacher. She was one who had thrown a tantrum over the idea of letting boys in and declared that her parents would withdraw her; and Severus shrugged and said that was their decision and hoped they would. She had the potential to be a great potioneer; but as she only worked hard to get kudos and to try to be teacher's pet somehow he doubted that she would ever achieve it.

There was no upper sixth; and from Hilda Hubble he learned that having as many as five in the lower sixth was unusual.

There were also no prefects.

Amarantha Keil and Morgana Fairchild were ambitious; but for themselves. They would do well in exams; but they were not prefect material.

Hilda Hubble was; and she was also busy recruiting for the MSHG and had joined Severus and family, with her sister, on the first day.

Severus watched for a week and then announced the creation of prefects.

The fifth had several possibilities; though he had rejected one, Erica Kettle, very regretfully, having received from her parents a letter declaring their intention to withdraw her before the place was contaminated by boys, as soon as she had finished her OWLs. She was a fair potioneer too; it was a shame and Erica herself had no wish to leave. Severus explained to her, privately, that he would have given her a prefect's badge but with so new an idea he wanted continuity for the little ones. She was disappointed of course; but her parents were determined and all she could do was to leave school with as many OWLs as she could muster from the new list.

Of the rest of the fifth, any one might have been suitable at Hogwarts; Rosamund Mandrake, an urbane girl with an eccentric taste for wearing several layers of black and white woolly hats, which predilection proved at least partly due to a weakness for ear infections that her parents had never had sorted out – Severus issued her with an internal potion and eardrops to clear up the current one and prepared to study the ear when it was better – was not unsuitable. Pamela Blackwood got height sick on a broom and was terrified of flying but was a hard worker who had as strong a sense of duty as any Hufflepuff. Sylvia Hubble was impulsive but at least with the right instincts of doing the right thing; she could almost have been a Marauder. Hillary Cantrip was kind to the younger ones but could be inclined to sarcasm and was a little rash in her decisions. Severus was reminded of a slightly more slapdash version of Willow. And Esmerelda Jorkins-Kovaci was a big, gentle , clumsy girl with a ready smile and endless patience both for her own work and with smaller people who ran to her for cuddles.

She was also ready to join the MSHG.

Accordingly, Severus announced that there would initially be three Prefects; Hilda Hubble, Sylvia Hubble and Esmerelda Jorkins.

She dropped the Kovaci on the whole as people seeing it written down tried to pronounce it 'kovacci' being unfamiliar with Albanian pronunciation. For Esmerelda was indeed one of the Albanian cousins that the unfortunate Bertha Jorkins had been to visit when she was seized, tortured and killed by Voldemort. And she was keen and eager to learn all about what had really happened when Severus spoke to her about it; and cried for her aunt and was fiercely glad Voldemort was dead and hero-worshipped Severus from that moment on for being part of the fight against him.

So far, Severus had received six letters from parents declaring their intention to withdraw their precious flowers from the presence of contaminating boys, most of them only children or with only sisters. He had also received one letter from Hillary Cantripp's father declaring the intention of moving his son to this school next year as he was learning nothing at Hellibore's and Hillary's letters home sounded as though she was having the time of her life; and four more enthusiastic letters of support. One was from the parents of Evangeline Chanter in the third. Although their son had left school they hoped that the school would prosper for taking boys as well as girls. Another was from only child Modesta Dukelow's parents hoping she would make male friends as well as females; and a third was from the parents of Bethany DuBois who intended to move their son to finish his final year at school with his sister and have a chance of passing a few NEWTs. And Severus intended to see the lad and set him holiday work if he was keen enough. As the boy himself wrote and asked what books he might study almost immediately, Severus sighed, and asked his staff to sort out some set work to send the boy each week, As Angelica Hellibore's father also intended to send his boys on to Prince Peak as they became old enough – Angelica had written enthusiastically about how the Headmaster's daughter had cured her back – the loss of six were replaced by the gaining of at least three. Plus those he planned to transplant next year and upcoming male wards. The school had a grand total of thirty four girls right now; a comparable number to Rowan House which had been running for only two years.

Next year there would be thirty nine plus however many came into the first.

A small academy was all very well, but classes of four to six were a bit silly in Severus' opinion! It had been bigger once; back in the seventies especially when people feared for their children in England; but Miss Cackle had refused to move with the times at all, and it had been old fashioned even in those days!

Severus had ambitions for the school; he was appalled at how the children had been let down. And he told them that he would be doing them no favours in life by letting them continue to slack as they had been doing hitherto. Anyone who did not like it might ask to be withdrawn at the end of the school year; but he anticipated that they would rise to the challenge and enjoy the art of learning to fit them better for life.

It was a little hard to resent being firmly complimented on one's anticipated ability to meet a challenge.

The Hubbles, Esmerelda and Angelica were firmly keeping alive the new custom of standing for the staff; and the younger ones soon got the idea when Krait came to her first lesson and was not risen for, by the second who were holding conversations at full lungs.

She went out of the classroom and came in again; and they still did not get the message. In fact they were still talking.

So she wrote on the board,

"Repeat one hundred times: 'I do not deserve the pearls of wisdom of my Professor until I show respect due to a professor' best handwriting and return to this classroom after tea to repeat the lesson you are too rude to acquire this morning."

The second were ready to jump up for their professor for the second lesson of the day in the Potions room.

They were not happy about having to repeat their transfigurations lesson time.

"Had you even stopped talking when I came into the room I would have been less harsh" said Krait sternly "But I really did not feel like giving my time to such rude little girls the like of whom I have never met before and whom one might have assumed had been reared in the gutter by your manners."

The second squirmed.

Miss Cackle had placed a great deal of emphasis on being young ladies; that common courtesy entered that had never occurred to them. And Gloria Cantripp, sister of Hillary who knew she should have remembered, duly swore to herself that she would sit on Deborah Pursell who had sworn not to be subservient, by which she meant that she intended to be insolent.

Indeed Deborah had failed to write any lines.

"I didn't feel like being bothered to do them" she said.

"Dear me" said Krait mildly "Then it's going to be very boring for you every play time and quidditch practise until you can be bothered to do them."

Deborah stared.

"But…" she said

"Goats butt" said Krait. "Little girls are obedient and polite to their elders and betters. There is no reason for you younger ones to leave school as ill-mannered moronic ignoramuses; you have time to learn and maybe even get a reasonable number of OWLs and NEWTs"

"Please er, Professor Malfoy, how many NEWTs do you have?" asked Evangeline Chanter.

"Seven, five at 'O' and two at 'E'" said Krait "I didn't get a full complement of seven 'O's; I was a little preoccupied with fighting Voldemort beside my friend Harry Potter."

That shut them up more effectively than anything; even Deborah Pursell.

If these Professors expected to get those sort of qualifications no wonder they expected a bit more work than was common to a school that prided itself on having a class where half the girls got one NEWT or more!

Dione's first lesson had been with the first years; who remembered eavesdropping on their elders on the night of the attack and duly jumped to their feet.

Dione smiled approval; and an enjoyable lesson was had by all since she had brought chocolate frogs to get hopping on the desk and challenged her class to get them to hop into their mouths.

That went down very well indeed!

The fourth, fifth and Sixth were no problem; they learned fast.

David Fraser with the third made a loud BANG from mid air to get the attention of his class and asked silkily and in his best Severus voice if they had perchance failed to notice him come in.

"No Mr Fraser" said one little girl.

"Well, perhaps one of you can explain – whilst giving me my proper title of Professor Fraser – why, if you noticed me come in you believed that it was acceptable to behave like guttersnipes, not merely failing to rise but actually some of you continuing a conversation?"

"Please sir" ventured another " – Professor Fraser I mean – it's always been customary for a teacher to bang on the desk when they were ready for us to start."

"No wonder then that your standards are so poor if you have so much time-wasting; and such lack of respect for your teachers. In future when a Professor enters the room you stand; including another visiting Professor. You sit when you are invited to do so by word or a wave of the hand to indicate the invitation. If speaking to the Headmaster you curtsey when greeting him and on leaving his office if you have been summoned for any reason. Very well; we will try this again, and we shall make up the time you have lost in your break, I will leave you enough to me to visit the bathroom and have a drink of water before your next lesson."

They got up smartly when he came in next time!

It would take a little time to break these young ladies to their ways; but it would happen.

They needed also to learn a bit about good clean fun and common mischief; so far as Severus could gather their idea of mischief was sabotaging each other.

Tales of the exploits of various marauders would circulate quickly enough if shared with the MSHG, still small with only four members – the Hubble girls, Esmerelda and Angelica - but bound to grow.

And Sirri and Beloc had the castle elves well in hand. They were inclined at first to be snippy at free elves; but Sirri had sneered at them firmly for their chosen subservient state and had bullied them until she reached the point where she could relax a bit and be gentler with them.

Elves were almost a liability at times!

Still, Sirri and Beloc would keep their eyes on them and duly keep them both in order and happy.

And they could always threaten to free them and employ free elves from outside to keep the place clean and do the cooking!

The problem was going to be the staffing.

On due consideration Severus decided to write to Ron and Hermione Weasley to teach Quidditch and Arithmancy – Miss Drill was proving incapable of dealing with Quidditch under David's instruction – to leave Krait concentrating on one thing only and maybe teaching Junior Chanting with Hermione teaching the Middle school and himself taking the seniors. History of Magic needed someone capable of teaching the more modern view; and Severus snapped his fingers in sudden glee!

Had not the New Marauders subverted Percy Weasley?

It would mean two Professors Weasley; but for Quidditch it would not be entirely inappropriate for Ron to be Professor Ron; and it would not trouble him. Hermione would be Madam Granger of course.

It was David who suggested an enchanting teacher.

"Byron Bekard of Ravenclaw; he's a good sort, all rounder, took six NEWTs got five 'O's as I recall" he said, trying not to sound smug that he had himself got six. "He was in your voluntary chanting class too; he could take Chanting perhaps at one level and we share it out."

Severus nodded.

"And seeing different styles won't do them any harm" he said. "I'll write to him; though isn't he in the Ministry?"

"Byron's the sort that if you dangle fighting Odessa from time to time in front of him he'll leap at it" said David "Remember how well he flew against the huorns and werewolves? Bet he's bored in an office by now!"

Byron WAS bored in an office by now and missed the camaraderie of school too.

He jumped at it.

So did Ron Weasley; and Hermione was not really displeased at having the title 'Professor'.

Percy Weasley was a little nervous at first of the idea of working under Severus, who still scared him; but the tone of the letter had been encouraging in that Severus wanted him to teach modern theories not dry rubbish.

Percy was going to have to mug up; but accepted gratefully!

There had never been a Weasley Professor before; now there were two, though only he, Percy was teaching an Academic subject!

David also suggested asking Hercule Maxime as a teacher of Ancient Runes – his favourite subject – and also languages as Severus was planning to be trilingual; and swapping Lee Nuffield to teach Latin and Muggle studies and Muggle games for Miss Drill, sending her to teach Muggle games and PT in Rowan House with those who had ability to go through to Hogwarts on Friday afternoons to join in quidditch with the others. Miss Drill really was a squib, or almost so, in any case; and would be happier in Rowan where she would not have to make a broom fly.

Miss Drill practically wept on Severus' neck when he suggested it; thinking she would have to teach Quidditch was making her life very stressful, and she had studied all forms of muggle sports; although she had been a student at the academy in Miss Cackle's mother's time she had been asked to leave in the third for lack of ability and had gone to a muggle school, something she had always been ashamed of but wept the truth all over Severus when it transpired that having a muggle degree – even a third class one – in sports science was desirable!

Hercule Maxime was glad too; finding a job for a part giant on the continent was hard; Madame Maxime, his aunt, firmly refused to acknowledge her blood, and had moreover, the part ownership of the school where she was head. Other than teaching under his aunt, Hercule had very little choice of career.

Teaching elsewhere was a lot different; for Olympe Maxime was a very forceful lady and Hercule found her intimidating as an employer because of the relationship regardless of how much he loved her.

Teaching with his friend David was an added bonus!

The new staff were to start in the new School Year, ten months down the line: but Severus was glad to get the situation sorted out.

It was going to work out just fine!


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Apart from thumping Jean-Paul Villeneuve, Lucius had not been idle.

On discovering that his page could enter the other space that the fey often used to travel, and spy and eavesdrop from it he had sent her around to check up on some of the people he considered dodgy; and had needed to comfort her when she came back crying because his sister Odila and her husband Gormund Yaxley were discussing punishing Lucius for making them look idiots both in taking away two daughters and letting the Squib one gain four NEWTs that she should never have been able to get, and in letting down the family by rutting – Odilia's word – with a goblin. The intent was to kidnap Tanjela and her children and use them in goblin coursing. Finn was very fond of all of Lucius' wives and was most upset.

The Gormund Yaxleys were already involved in this foul activity; with goblins in captivity, and Lucius had no hesitation in taking the matter directly to Alastor Moody.

The result of this was a flurry of other arrests and the whole was reported in lurid detail in the 'Daily Prophet' and restrained but accurate detail in the 'Wizarding Times'.

Sephara took time out from teaching to visit her sister – living with the other wards of the Snapes in the orphanage until she entered school next year, after which she would spend her holidays with Sephara and Neville – and found her moderately indifferent to the news. As Ludmilla said, she scarcely knew her parents; only to say good morning and good night to. Sephara was more her mother than anyone else.

The news was a scandal; but it broke the small and vicious ring of Goblin coursers right open and was a great relief to such goblins as felt themselves at risk from this wicked so-called sport.

As Kordach also had a most excellent sense of timing and handed over two fraudulent goblin bookies to the authorities within a couple of days of the first breaking news it was a time of good press for goblins.

A letter in the 'Times' from Professor Konal to the effect that greater educational opportunities would educate the more ignorant masses in the fact that there were more similarities than differences between the races and that the boundaries of suspicion planted by foolishness on both sides in the past and built upon by the whispers and lies of Voldemort and his followers over more recent times needed to be torn down and let both peoples see that the grass could grow as green under the feet of all so long as it was well tended and cared for, and the rank weeds of lies, prejudice and ignorance rooted out as soon as they began to form.

Kinat was well teased by his own set of course that it sounded as though he was the one teaching Herbology, rather than Myrtle; and Abraxus advised him to stick to Arithmancy.

Myrtle said it was a very nice analogy and poked her husband for being rude to Kinat.

The news affected very few people at Hogwarts; Kate Rosier had an uncle arrested and said 'good riddance' to him; Romneya Coulter's parents received an official warning and her sister's husband was arrested. The Coulters had blinked at what they knew was going on; and Romneya, who had goblin friends, pulled a face and commented that her mum and dad were only cowards because of Karlinna being involved and her husband was no loss. Several Crabbes went down, but not close relatives of those at school, and the Yaxleys had always dissociated themselves from Gormund in any case. Although a few from the old families with deatheater tendencies were involved, in the main it was those who had not received a Hogwarts education themselves and resented the only people they could look down on getting what they had not.

There were suddenly vacancies all over the country for clerks in positions that did not require qualifications; and goblins flocked to fill them, fulfilling the prophesies made by those who feared having their jobs taken by goblins; but as 'The Times' said rather snidely those who were now in Azkaban had made their own prophesies come true by showing that a sufficiency of unqualified humans could not be trusted in responsible positions, the very thing of which they had accused goblins. It was to be hoped that the new incumbents in these jobs would prove satisfactory and trustworthy.

The Yule Ball came; and passed without incident beyond Albert Jackman asking if Lionel Dell was deformed to be able to service three women at once and was that seemly behaviour for the Head Boy.

It was while Lionel was dressing in the dormitory.

"Dear Jackman" said Lionel "How wild it must make you that I can have a pick of girls and nobody will go with you! Is it true that you tried to brew a love potion and ended up with a foul concatenation that you threw down the loo and attracted the regard of a Grindylow from the lake?"

"Oh very witty Dell" said Jackman.

"I am; it's a part of my charm" said Lionel "As well as my good looks and all my other hidden charms. Unfortunately for you, if you have hidden charms it was done so well that you couldn't even find them with an _accio_ spell. Do you need that to go for a pee as well, by the way, in order to find it?"

Jackman flung himself on Lionel at this point and consequently spent the ball in the shape of a rubber ball with tentacles and pustules thrust in the boot locker.

That was NOT seemly behaviour for the Head Boy; but the Head Boy was thoroughly sick of Jackman after six years sharing a dormitory with him.

The Free School had broken up the day before the Ball and the Marauders came to share enthusiastically how their first term of teaching had gone.

"It's tough" said Hawke "The kids are tough, half scared of coming in case anyone labels them sissies; some eager for learning and pretending they don't care to insulate themselves against failure, some there because their parents realise what it'll mean to their futures but the kids haven't realised yet and are a bit sullen; all of them expect more clouts than candy, two out of three can't even read and we had to read the riot act when they wanted to take their wands home to show their parents."

"What's wrong with that?" said Lionel who had come over to hear.

"Well if they could be trusted not to do underage wand work nothing; but they can't" said Kinat "They've no self discipline most of them. And it's unreasonable to expect it; they're dead chuffed to have wands and would obviously want to show off – especially if taunted to do so by neighbour's kids or siblings. As any Hogwarts kid would – if they went home to sleep every night. Come on, wandwork is forbidden in the corridors; and a certain class of hexes aren't called corridor curses for nothing. And the worst the kids here who break rules get is detention. Doing the same in the open street is a broken wand and probably the closure of the school for us not being able to enforce discipline. We had to explain that to them in words of one syllable. But they each have their own wand locker where they can remove their wand each morning, and we've tied the locker to a thumbprint so nobody else can open them; and they only close when there's a wand inside so we can see at a glance if anyone's not put their wand back. They need a lot more watching than the kids here; most of them have been left to run wild, poor little sods, while both parents work. Getting them to rise for a Professor was fun – not!"

"We got them to do it in the end by asking if they wanted to be taken for the muggle children in the schools most of them go to" grinned Hawke. "Maybe it is over the top, but if any transfer here it's something of a continuity to help them settle in; and no reason they shouldn't learn respect. So long as we give them respect too; and that we explained. Respect is to be earned but they rise, we said, to respect our earned education. If we failed to win their respect in other ways they would have to be creative in how to demonstrate that. Crumbs, and I thought I was a tough little bastard!"

"If it hadn't been for Hawke and his experience running with a gang of muggle kids we'd have been sunk" said Romulus.

"And hurrah for the holidays to give us strength for next term!" said Abraxus "Once they settle fully and we don't have to prove every day that we're harder than them it'll be a different story; but right now we've got a leader type in the fourth – classic Lionel Dell, cocky little sod, challenges us at every turn. If we'd not known how well you turned out Lionel we'd have despaired. When we have him he'll be a leader for the school – he IS a leader, wherein lies the source of all trouble because he's determined to undermine us."

"Kid has a drunken father who knocks him about and tells him he's bound to fail in this school, book learning isn't for their sort" said Hawke "I made some discreet enquiries. 'Course the reason he's acting up is to see if he is going to be rejected and slung out. I'd half like to send him to Hogwarts to get him away from his dad but Hogwarts couldn't cope with him yet. Colourful language is only the start; peeing out of the attic windows on passers by was only one of his exploits. Which I'm afraid was awfully funny as well as horrifying. Mortimer Bane – and he is a Bane right now I'm afraid – is one unhappy kid. Knowing where he's coming from, as I do, to at least some extent helps; but oh boy, it's hard work!"

"I have no doubt you will manage to help him to make you proud of him" said Dumbledore. "As I am proud of Lionel with all the progress he has made!"

"And I had less excuse to need to progress" said Lionel. "If he has a hero – Harry or David say – can you arrange a visit? I hero worshipped David so much! Still do for that matter; I always think what he might do when I'm disciplining small persons!"

"It's a thought" said Abraxus "But we intend to forget him for a week at least!"

The Malfoy twins had other things to consider when they got home to find that Mary-Anne Green and her dad were spending Christmas with them.

Their elder sister Morgan, a muggle, had met Jim Green at the hospital where she worked as a Nursing Sister and he had commented on the name of Nurse Malfoy.

There was a party to celebrate their engagement.

Mary-Anne squealed in joy and hugged her dad.

"I KNEW you'd find someone efficient to take care of you, and if Morgan is as efficient as her mum she'll keep you just FINE!" she said, beaming on Morgan.

Morgan had something difficult to say once the youngest ones had gone to bed.

"I want to say I'm sorry for always refusing to listen about magic and – and being anti and kinda ignoring Abraxus and – and our new brother Hawke" she said. "I should have told you why before; but once you don't talk about something it gets harder and harder. Mum, you were ill with carrying Abraxus, do you remember you let me walk home alone because the doctor told you to keep your feet up to prevent him coming too early? And – well, that was when Mr Smedley started interfering with me."

"WHAT? OLD BASTARD! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?" roared Casimir, startling everyone – not least himself – being a man who never raised his voice.

"Gracious dad, if I'd realised you were able to get stroppy like that I would have done!" said Morgan, looking on her father with new respect.

"Any man gets stroppy over a bastard who does that!" said Casimir grimly.

Hawke and Abraxus looked at each other.

"No age tag" said Hawke

"Severus' curse on Dione's mum's fancy man" said Abraxus.

"Are you two planning unpleasant magic on Smedley?" asked Morgan.

"Damn right we are" said Hawke "Our sister; not to mention protecting other people. You've been an ok big sister to me Morgan even though you did resent me a bit; you never took it out on me when you realised I pulled my weight with the chores too."

Morgan shrugged.

"No point being childish. I resented Abraxus because him being there made it happen. And by the way I hope you hex him or whatever you call it real painfully."

"Heh heh, we will" said Abraxus "And we'll tell you about what we're planning when dad isn't listening; he's too young. And mum might disapprove too."

"Whatever you do isn't bad enough for a man who's hurt my little girl" said Wendy "Morgan, my dear Morgan, I'm so sorry that I didn't realise! You were a bit withdrawn; I'm afraid I put it down to jealousy over the baby when you were a big girl of ten and nearly ready for secondary school with all the changes that meant too…."

"I was jealous too. That didn't help. And then I had to cope with him having a weird name that I had to explain at school as a family name and get teased about; then when he got bigger he could do things like electrocute bullies and I thought if only I could have done that to Smedley he wouldn't have hurt me and then he even went to a special school to learn more. Yes, I've been jealous of Abraxus and later Hawke. But – but I have Jim and he's a muggle like me and can cope with a talented child and his ex wife's a cow and only divorced him so she can marry her lover."

"And much joy may he have of living in her house full of rotting fish" said Mary-Anne dreamily.

"You said what?" said her father.

Mary- Anne beamed.

"Oh those of us who had problem parents swapped them around one holidays to play jokes on so we could all get alibis – all muggle jokes, no illegal wand work – and the Tuthills put dead herrings anywhere they could think to hide them in mother's place AND Mr Baddock's. . Alice and me we did Lionel Dell's mother and her boyfriend. We used polyjuice potion to look like them going home, 'cos there's no rules against brewing potions underage. And itching powder and things and we put chilli juice in his pants."

"Good grief!" said Jim.

Morgan laughed.

"Well I can't say I blame you; Jim's told me the way your mother treated you and him."

"That's almost enterprising enough to be marauders!" said Abraxus "I LIKE!"

Mary-Anne grinned.

"We liked it" she said. "Alice's mum and her fancy man didn't like barfing into a blocked loo on Christmas eve though. Plumber's stuff; Grigs knew about it. He and Lionel listened to the comments on sneakoscopes after and told us all about it."

"I don't think we really ought to know any more, Mary-Anne dear" said Wendy "we couldn't then deny all knowledge if anyone asked us. Morgan, my dear, we've failed you quite as much as these aberrant parents!"

"No Mum! Never!" said Morgan "You always tried; I just couldn't come out with it and tell you. And then it was a little canker locked away inside me and I couldn't let it out. Not until Jim broke his arm decorating and I – I found he was part of the world but still needed muggle medicine."

"I couldn't remember how to find St Mungo's" said Jim "And I'm glad I couldn't. It may have taken longer to heal but it gave me Morgan."

"And I cried all over him" said Morgan "And now I realise how silly I was to keep it to myself. I guess I regret there not being a place like Rowan House for me; but there will be for our children if they aren't magical as of course they may not be. And – and well, I want to be more a part of the family, and oh! Abraxus, I'm sorry I wouldn't come to your wedding!"

Abraxus flung himself on his sister and hugged her.

"Being my sis is worth heaps more than being at a ceremony!" he said. "Come on our sis; we're going to go and perform a brief ceremony on old Smelly Smedley RIGHT NOW and ruin his Christmas!"

Morgan gave a brief, fierce smile.

"I like that idea" she said.

"Isn't it muggle baiting doing it that way?" said Casimir mildly.

"We'll make plea that it's to protect other muggles as well as for revenge – if we're caught" said Hawke "Which we won't be. Wandless and with chanting; no wand, no evidence. Sorted!"

Smedley was not pleased to have several people arrive without warning in his bedroom.

They explained who they were and why they had come, and hoisted him out of bed with _levicorpus_ in order to circle around chanting. That they were not as good as Severus did not really matter; Smedley was unlikely to know any curse breakers at all.

Then they explained it to him and left him shouting and swearing that they were insane that such a thing was impossible and that he'd have the law on them.

"What for, old boy?" said Hawke "Laws against witchcraft have been repealed. Only thing remaining is the fraudulent mediums act. No medical examination will show anything; only you will know in your most private moments. Unless you can bear the pain of wanking on video to show to them; well, all in the day's work for the medicos, like they say, just a little prick…. I don't think you've the fortitude for the thorns to be there long enough for them to see. You'll never hurt another little girl you bastard. Never should have hurt our sister. By the way, if you do call the fuzz, have fun explaining how we teleported in and teleported out. May the Force NOT be with you; have a bad day and Unhappy Christmas" and they left.

Morgan was crying and laughing and clung to her brothers.

At last it was a united family.

"And we should make Mary-Anne call us 'Auntie' said Hawke.

"Idiot" said Abraxus.

In the Lucius Malfoy household the five children up at Hogwarts got to meet Lucius' new page.

Finn bowed deeply.

"Here, you don't need to do that!" said Erica.

Finn grinned.

"But in public it's fun!" she said.

"That went by a little fast" said Bella.

"Well you see if Master Lucius has a free elf in livery who's more subservient than most people's slave elves it mak' them muckle sair!" said Finn, lapsing back into the idiom of the Unseelie court that she was trying to lose.

Bella considered this.

"That makes a lot of sense" she said "I say it's a shame you didn't want to go to Hogwarts; reckon they'd have invited you into the Marauders!"

"I didnae want the hassle" said Finn.

Gorbrin drew Finn aside as the others went to see their youngers.

"I met your mum at Hogwarts" he said "And I know you're a girl."

"What do you want of me?" Finn's eyes went flinty.

"Nothing! I just wanted to tell you so you knew you didn't have to pretend."

"Oh. Well in the Unseelie Court if someone takes you aside and tells you they know something then they usually want something" said Finn.

"We're not Unseelie" said Gorbrin. "Do you fancy my dad?"

Finn went a brownish colour that looked like a blush.

"Yes" she said in a little voice.

"Oh well, if my mothers are happy with the idea it'll sort out sooner or later" said Gorbrin.

"I love the mistresses so much,, they're all so kind and nice, and that awful woman wanting to kidnap Mistress Tanjela is so wicked!" said Finn "And snatch you and your sisters at the train station!"

Gorbrin's eyes went flat.

"I'm glad dad called in the aurors" he said "But I bet he had to fight with himself not to just cut them into little pieces!"

"I guess he got himself together while I cried all over him as I was that shocked!" said Finn.

"Reckon it's decent of you to care."

"Is my family now!" squeaked Finn indignantly.

"Yeah…. And whatever happens we'll always be your family" said Gorbrin. "I guess soon I'll be calling you mum"

"That's silly; I'm only about sixteen."

Gorbrin shrugged.

"Well maybe I'll stick to Finn then; unless you want to be Linny or whatever else you were for the Unseelies."

"It was Fionnghuala. Finn suits me braw well."

"Finula's pretty but if Finn you're happy with, Finn it shall be."

"He ca's me that wi' affection in his voice" she said blushing again.

Gorbrin nodded.

Lucius had preferred that he Gorbrin should call him 'Lucius' with affection then 'dad' uncomfortably; and how good it was to feel that his real dad would be happy calling so good a stepfather as Lucius 'dad' with ease.

Finn enjoyed the parties that they went to where she could make other people feel anywhere from uncomfortable to envious by total subservience to Lucius, kneeling at his feet and running errands. Arthur Weasley took Lucius to task for so using his elf; and her Master Lucius just laughed and said

"Watch Arthur and learn!"

As a rude wizard jogged Finn's arm as she carried a drink for Master Lucius and refused to apologise, Finn apparated all his clothes off and calmly got another drink.

The wizard in question howled, pulled on a robe and bore down purposefully on Lucius and Finn, kneeling to offer the goblet.

"Aren't you going to discipline your elf Malfoy?" he demanded. He had a French accent.

"What for? Taking action to display disapprobation of your rudeness? Hardly, Villeneuve. You are rude" said Lucius.

Villeneuve waited for Lucius to turn away then swung a vicious kick towards Finn.

And it never landed because his foot carried on moving as Lucius swung him by spell upside-down to dangle by the ankle in mid air, the hastily pulled on robe dangling over his shoulders revealing his nakedness beneath.

"Ugh, not a pretty sight" said Lucius. "And certainly not one fit for a child."

Villeneuve rotated right way up again and Lucius passed his goblet to Finn, planted a fist in the Frenchman's face and retrieved his goblet from the kneeling elf.

"You'd think he'd learn not to irritate me" he remarked to Arthur, brushing a careless hand across Finn's silver-gilt locks.

Arthur Weasley regarded Lucius for a moment and shook his head.

"Games; and you train a child to them?"

"Finn doesn't take any training at all Arthur; he has the perfect instincts. As good as any of my girls, just WATCH them play Pansy Parkinson."

"Any particular reason?" said Arthur mildly as he watched the pug faced young woman getting more and more angry as the Madams Malfoy made small-talk at her.

"Oh, having failed to wed Draco she thought she'd be suitable to be a fourth Madam Mafoy as my mistress" said Lucius "Coos at me – or is that barks at me – every opportunity she gets, wagging her tail, or at least her arse in my general direction. Mind you that has to be a better sight than her face I suppose."

Arthur happened to be glancing at Finn and saw the elf give a convulsive little jerk as Lucius mentioned Pansy Parkinson's ambitions. A surreptitious blue hand made a few motions.

Shortly thereafter a purple and green with orange stripes cloud of gas issued from the region of Miss Parkinson's backside.

Finn was smiling serenely.

Arthur looked again at the boy.

Boy?

He glanced at Lucius. Did he know or…..? damn Lucius! One could never be sure of anything about him; except that he was now largely one of the good guys and really he could be reprehensibly amusing!

Back home, Gorbrin and Lucius' girls drew Finn in to participate in a family Christmas; the girls were training her up.

They knew Lucius' weaknesses and loved him the more for them.

Finn learned to play wizarding whist.

"When Lucius is in council session he won't need a page; and then you can make up a foursome with us" said Narcissa "Grace does when she's around but she has her own life to lead!"

The rules were not hard; the difficulty lay in keeping your hand secret when the face cards would insist on giving you advice.

"All the suits have different personalities" said Charlotte "Terribly disconcerting at times! We think they correspond to the houses of Hogwarts; Diamonds will keep calculating odds for you and being snide about your play, they're Ravenclaw and it's notable the Queen is definitely in charge like Rowena Ravnclaw; as is the Queen of Hearts, as Helga Hufflepuff, they're very helpful and sweet but wrong as often as not. Clubs are Slytherin, they're fairly aggressive and the Jack likes trying to get you to cheat. Spades are Gryffindor, want to make aggressive but often ill considered plays. And occasionally they try to have a punch-up in your hand if you let two face cards of different suits be in reach of each other."

"So I see" said Finn, trying to extricate her jack of diamonds from the head lock the king of clubs had him in.

It was fun; and she soon lost her shyness and was using their first names as they asked her to do.

Abraxus and Hawke went to check on the school during the holidays; vandalism was always a possibility.

Seeing Mortimer Bane's sharp, part-goblin face in the alley was not something either relished; but the boy was obviously earning to eke out his father's rather irregular earnings as a carrier by lifting boxes for a shopkeeper. Young Bane put down the last box and ran over.

"Professors" he said "I wanted to say ta fer all you learned me but I won't be able ter come back nex' term."

"Why not?" asked Hawke.

The boy shrugged his thin shoulders.

"My dad fell of the cart an' killed his stupid self" he said. "Rent collector took the cart and donkey to pay fer rent we was be'ind wiv; I gorra work to 'ave somewhere ter live."

"Merlin's bedsocks boy, a child of your abilities shouldn't be in that position!" said Hawke "I have a job for you that'll allow you to stay on at school, and give you somewhere to live too. Do you know why we're down near the school?"

Mortimer Bane shook his head.

Hawke went on,

"Because those kids who are afraid to try are still envious of those who have the balls to go for learning; and some of them like to throw stones to break windows. We need to check the place over regularly and see there's no damage and maybe shout at young scoundrels. What we could do with is a lad who'd be prepared to live in overnight and in the holidays and keep an eye out; a caretaker if you like. I was thinking of looking for one; but as you need a job and somewhere to live that isn't usurious I'll give you first refusal."

"_**Are you insane? That's an invitation to him to destroy the inside!"**_ said Abraxus in his brother's head.

"_**He won't; believe me he needs to be trusted"**_ Hawke replied.

"That's it? Just live in?" said Bane "What's the catch and what's the pay?"

"The catch is you have to spend a majority of time in and not have regular times to go out that people could watch and calculate" said Hawke "The pay is your accommodation and your food, your clothes and books and a galleon a week pocket money."

"Cor! I'll bloody do it!" said Bane.

"We need to sort out where to put you to sleep" said Hawke smoothly "We were going to think about a small flat while we were here. I'm thinking that the transfigurations room is an awkward shape and larger than it needs to be; with a partition all you need in there is a bed and a small desk, you can work in the library any time or sit in the kitchen and, in the holidays, in the staffroom. There are bathrooms and toilets just across the landing and your room would have a window onto the street to look out. You may use the bath as often as you like as part of the perks of the job. At least it isn't haunted like the bathrooms at Hogwarts used to be; nothing much more disconcerting when you're running a bath and this insubstantial girl pops out of the tap."

Abraxus gave him a Look.

"Cuh!" said Bane. "Oh Professor Malfoy!" and then he burst, disconcertingly into tears and knelt in the slush at Hawke's feet.

"DON'T do that!" said Hawke unceremoniously heaving him up "Do you think Professor Snape has nothing better to do all winter than brew pepperup potion for idiots who catch cold through getting wet?" he hid a grin at the thought of Romulus being Professor Snape; it still seemed bizarre!

"Nossir, sorry sir" said Bane.

Hawke put an arm about him.

"Come on" he said "Let's go put a cauldron on for cocoa in the school. You're our ward now; we'll take care of you."

And the hardboiled little boy cried and cried and needed cuddles.

And Abraxus had to acknowledge that his brother had been quite right.

Mortimer Bane would be no more trouble; by the time they had helped him collect his meagre belongings and Abraxus had beaten up the mean, whining rent collector and demanded to see his accounting that permitted him to steal a donkey and cart he had his heroes and his heroes were the Malfoy twins.

And the cart was still in his possession on permanent loan to the school, and a mild suggestion that cleaned up with some seats in would make it a fine jalopy to collect smaller children for a kindergarten or go on school trips had Bane determining to get it spotless by the new term!

As for the small room they sorted out for him to Mortimer, used to sleeping in an apartment that was little more than a cupboard, it was paradise.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Lionel Dell waited to load up his pupils.

There was something distinctly odd about the cart that Maud Hubble had.

"Maud Enid Langstaff Hubble, you wait one minute!" bellowed Dell as she prepared to make a run for the barrier.

Maud screeched to a halt and most of the stuff fell off her trolley.

"Yes Dell?" she said.

"A hockey stick I can believe in if you've taken up Muggle games but a badminton racket?" enquired Lionel.

Maud looked.

"ooer" she said "I seem to have the wrong trolley. I stopped to buy some sweets only they didn't have change for a galleon and called me a snotty brat."

Lionel groaned.

"You good prune, muggles have different money!" he said.

"DO they? How am I to know that?"

"Maybe by staying awake in Muggle Studies" said Lionel with some asperity "I'm wondering if it should be a compulsory OWL to take. Really Maud! Come on, let's look for a trolley that looks like yours."

"The initials on the trunk were right" said Maud, mostly unabashed.

"Good; we'll have it put out on the P.A." said Lionel "….No I'm not going to explain right now, go back to the sweet stall."

Lionel's beautiful public school manner charmed the lady in the office and shortly the public address system boomed,

"Would the schoolchild whose initials are MEHL who has the wrong trolley go back to the sweet stall where the other MEHL is waiting to exchange trolleys"

Lionel also hurried to the sweet stall to prevent Maud getting too chatty with a normal muggle schoolchild.

He was a little boy about Maud's age and he thrust out a hand.

"Malcolm Edward Hayes Levington" he said.

"Maud Edith Hubble Langstaff" said Maud. "Fortunately our head boy noticed that we don't play whaddya call it with a racket."

"Badminton. You play hockey though? I say what's the broom for?"

"The weevils – first years - are doing the Scottish play and Maud's a witch" said Lionel smoothly. "She looks rather good with her hair all loose, all she has to do to look gruesome is to appear the way she normally comes to breakfast."

"Oy!" said Maud.

Malcolm grinned.

"I say I am glad not to get to school with girl's clothes!" he said.

"You'd have had to have lived in her cricketing whites; at least they're sexless" said Lionel. "Take the RIGHT trolley Maud and go at once to the train; really I think you're going to be as much trouble as Mary-Anne Green or any Weasely!"

"Sorry Dell" said Maud "I say Malcolm, what school? I could write to you."

"'Tisn't St Jodoc's" said Lionel "We play fixtures with them."

"No it's way up North" said Malcolm "Almost into Scotland, we're the Abbey School"

"We're Hogwarts and we ARE in Scotland" said Maud.

"Ayrshire" said Lionel "We have a web page."

"Cool; I wish we did, it's a bit old fashioned" said Malcolm "Great name too! Hey, I'd better run too or I'll miss my train!"

Lionel was hustling Maud back when his mobile phone rang.

He answered quickly.

"Head Boy? This is Morgan Malfoy-Green, sister of the Malfoy twins, Mary-Anne's step mother, I'm a nurse in a muggle hospital."

"There's a problem with Mary-Anne?"

"Not this time, I delivered her on my way to work, which was when some well meaning muggle brought a er, Richmaya Crouch-Jones in with a broken arm after she fell over someone's luggage. Your number is in the useful list Mary-Anne gave me"

Lionel groaned.

He should have added the Crouch-Jones to the list of those who caused trouble; it was tempting fate not to have done!

Not that Lionel was superstitious, but….. still, at least Mary-Anne had given her new step mother some sensible numbers.

"Can you get Mr Green to collect Mrs Crouch Jones to take her to St Mungo's after?" he asked.

"Not a problem; my mum says there's a back way through the loo, which I didn't quite understand but I thought if she handled getting her to school, that'd be ok?"

"More than okay, thanks, Madam Malfoy-Green" said Lionel "I appreciate you letting me know."

"No problem! Best of luck finding HER luggage and getting the rest loaded" said Morgan.

Lionel rousted off Gorbrin and Erica in company with Richmaya's brother Silvester to look for Richmaya's luggage

"I thought, here we are at the station I can go find my friends, how much trouble can even Ricki get into?" said Silvester "Honestly, sisters! They ought to be kept in a cage until they turn seventeen."

Erica thoughtfully whacked him across the back of the head with two fingers Severus Snape style.

At least three warts ought to find an errant weevil's luggage; the alternative was sending Maud and her other Gryffindor friend Isabel Nightshade. At which thought Lionel shuddered.

Mary-Anne had boarded the train while he was sorting out Maud and was looking forward to telling her set all about the quiet but very nice wedding between her father and the oldest child of the Casimir Malfoys. Mary-Anne hesitated but to her blood kin gave a shortened version of what had happened to Morgan to make her previously dislike the magical world.

"So there's another way people can be made anti" she said "I wouldn't betray her confidences but as we work to smooth over differences I thought it was probably important."

"Kinda drives home how much sheer coincidence can count" said Ross "Both ways. If we hadn't had Durmstrang, Lionel wouldn't have tried to show off and we shouldn't have ended up friends and blooding me to have real talent. We'd just have kinda ignored each other and I'd have ended up in Rowan studying Chemistry and stuff."

Heather snuggled at him.

"And I hadn't had a great-aunt who gave me her Chalet School books I'd not have thought of gatecrashing Hogwarts!" she said.

"But we have to bear in mind that coincidence can be bad as well as good" said Lionel "And try to make allowances. And for racism too."

Racism was a more black and white issue to the younger members of the school; and Bella's would-be marauders had grabbed a carriage to discuss what was to be done about – or rather, to – Priscilla Parkinson and her satellites Wilfrid Crabbe and Darryl Zabini.

"I think we ought to turn them into goblins and see how they like it" said Mimi "Or elves. Being short is AWFULLY awkward at times."

Being short was a litotic description of herself; Mimi reached two foot six on her toe tips.

"We're not good enough yet at transfigurations" said Bella "Remember what the McGonagall said about mucking with human transfiguration? We ain't Lilith Snape."

"Potions" said Maud "I'm quite good at potions; there's Polyjuice potion."

"How do we do that without making them beat on the goblin we pick to turn them into?" said Bella.

"We ask someone clever like Gorbrin if there's a way to make it non-specific" said Maud.

Gorbrin was led into the carriage blindfold, which seemed a little silly to him but weevils and their games were probably to be humoured.

They put their plan to him.

"Hmmm" said Gorbrin "No reason it shouldn't be possible. I'll work on it. How are you going to make them take it? I've heard that Polyjuice Potion tastes vile."

"We get some chocolate cauldrons" said Bella "and talk Tony Parkinson and Philip Burke into having her and her gang take them off them. Only we add the potion into the fillings; and we put the female potion into the liquid toffee ones because those are Priscilla's favourites and she won't let the boys have them."

"Zabini likes cherry" said Mimi "If we include their own hairs in their favourites it'll kinda make them the same to look at but just a different race!"

"Cool!" said Bella.

"Can't we make it last longer than usual?" suggested Drusillina "If it wears off after just a few hours it's not much of a lesson."

"I'll see what I can come up with" said Gorbrin "There's a recipe for an extending potion in one of dad's books, and I think there's a copy in the library. Give us a couple of weeks?"

"That's great, thanks Gorbrin!" said Bella.

They let him go back to his own friends and settled down with sweeties from Ethel Portree's trolley – she HAD got change for a Galleon – to dream sweet dreams of vengeance on their pet enemies for the rest of the journey.

It was good to be back at school.

The holidays had been good – especially for Gorbrin, when Lucius had unveiled a portrait of his real father Tobak, painted by Charlotte from Tanjela's memories in the slightly battered Pensieve Lucius had ….acquired. Gorbrin suspected it had been in the Yaxley household and had disappeared into Lucius' possession before the Aurors inventoried everything; and probably Finn had taken it using Feyspace at that.

Gorbrin had spoken to Lucius about Finn; and found that he was leaving things as they were until she was older and knew her own mind more as to whether he would launch her as his ward or take her as another Madam Malfoy. His wives were aware which was the main thing; and Gorbrin had seen their loving protectiveness towards the little blue fey.

But most exciting was a magical painting of Tobak, being able to tell him about Lucius and how good he had been to them; and Tobak had given Gorbrin every blessing to be of the family Malfoy and make its Goblin branch a branch that fostered peaceful exchange between the two peoples and to work for fair deals for everyone.

Better perhaps even than that was the miniature of Tobak that was one of Gorbrin's Christmas gifts; and he would keep that safe to look at, and even to talk to when he needed advice. And of course, wizarding pictures were capable of moving from one portrait to another; the miniature of Tobak could pass messages to Malfoy Manor if need be!

Charlotte had been busy on another portrait too, one of James Potter – who complained from time to time that she hadn't finished his legs – to go to Professor Snape in Austria so he could maintain a link with the Marauders. Gorbrin knew about the Marauders' painting because it had been mentioned by the various Marauders that passed through.

And Bella wanted to be one of the next Marauders too.

She had asked their new brother Ian as a courtesy if he wanted to join her gang and do marauder type stuff; but Ian was too busy enjoying himself being settled and not beaten up and having a loving family home. Gorbrin appreciated that. This time last year he had been feeling much the same and he told Ian that.

Ian grinned; he had a most attractive smile.

"Thanks, big bro!" he said "It's nice to have big brothers and sisters too and not to have to try to be the one who holds things together; did you find that?"

"Oh yes" said Gorbrin with feeling. "I kind of feel I wouldn't mind breaking out a bit in mischief from time to time now; but when you've been the man of the family it does put a crimp on your sense of irresponsibility."

Helping Bella and friends with their potion was about as far as Gorbrin really wanted to bother to go; he couldn't see any point of getting into trouble for its own sake, and he had his work and his Quidditch and his friends.

And Ian felt much the same.

Richmaya Crouch-Jones returned to school none the worse for her brief stay in a muggle hospital full of how nice Madam Malfoy-Green was and what a nice house the Casimir Malfoy's had and how the famous Malfoy twins had clipped her round the ear each side for being a Crouch-Jones of the Crouchiest and Jonesiest sort, gave her sweeties and blindfolded her to take her through some sort of gate that involved scrambling to get back into school.

The Loo network was a secret of the Blood group after all, even if Wendy Malfoy was clever enough to work out its existence. But then Wendy was one of the cleverer and more perspicacious muggles there were.

Meanwhile Gorbrin started his researches and the preparations for Polyjuice Potion since it required the stewing of lacewing flies for twenty-one days; and the fluxweed needed picking at full moon and he would have to write to his mum to ask for such things as boomslang skin; she, unlike Lucius, did not know enough to get suspicious about buying it for him if he wrote it was for an experimental project.

Which it was, in a way.

Gorbrin felt that the changing to a non specific could be accounted for in the stirring; every seventh stir a counter-clockwise one would have the right arithmantic effect; but he did the math anyway and decided that every fourth would be even better.

Then he was researching extending potions. 'Advanced Potion Making' contained recipes for everlasting elixirs but that was really a little drastic. Fun to think about, but drastic. And polyjuice potion was one that could be made everlasting, though the ethics of that in the normal way were dodgy as well as having to be prepared to give up your whole life to be someone else if you did it voluntarily….it was a risk of polyjuice potion that if you accidentally used animal hairs that the change was unpredictable, partial and required intervention to reverse since it was not designed to turn people into animals.

Did it work from race to race?

Gorbrin decided to decant a little from the main batch he was brewing and told Bella that he and she must experiment with being each other for the normal duration of the potion to see if it had normal effects.

"What if it doesn't?" asked Bella

"Then we go to Madam Hardbroom and tell her quite truthfully we had a discussion over whether it worked cross racially and wanted to experiment and please would she rescue us" said Gorbrin "'Cos we shan't at that point have done any mischief."

Bella brightened.

"That's all right then" said she happily!

Bad weather with everyone confined indoors led to more ill-natured comments from Parkinson and her gang that usual and strengthened the resolve of the would-be marauders to pay them back, especially after Wilfrid Crabbe and Darryl Zabini were egged on by Parkinson to deliberately jog the goblin weevils and spill ink on their work.

"Pigs" said Erica, helping to clean up with spells "I'm tempted to use the same method I did on Wilfrid the Worthless last year; no Professor Snape to de-curse him this time, I bet Connie's not as hot on curse-cures as Severus."

"We have the matter in hand, thank you lordly Wart" said Bella "it's weevils they're getting at – largely 'cos they've realised people their own age are harder than them – so weevils should deliver the retaliation."

"Well let me know if you need a hand" said Erica. "We've not got into trouble yet, our set, so it's time we did something I guess."

Bella giggled.

If their potion plot went well it should eclipse any trouble anyone else could manage.

And at last it was ready to make the first experiments; which they did carefully last thing at night on Sunday night, the girls in Bella's dormitory knowing that she was going to look like Gorbrin, and Lina Hallow keeping cave for her; and Leo, let to know that something was going on, dropped a sleep charm of the other three boys in Gorbrin's dormitory for someone looking like Bella to slide into his four poster bed and firmly draw the curtains.

"All right mate?" said Leo.

"Crumbs, it feels weird" said Gorbrin "I'm too tall and my hands and feet feel so small I don't know how you humans manage…as for being a girl it's monstrously disconcerting, that's far more alien than being human."

Leo chuckled.

"I bet!" he said.

In Bella's dormitory similar uncomplimentary comments were being made about how boys coped with so many things dangling in the breeze to have a mischief done to them.

They woke up as themselves; which proved that the potion was just fine cross racially.

Now all they needed were appropriate hairs from appropriate people.

Only third years and above were allowed into Hogsmead; so Leo Black-Weasley was involved again; and Bella took him into her confidence as he was one of her favourite cousins, as she said, batting her eyelashes at him.

"R-reckon it s-sounds good" said Leo, inclined to stutter at times when excited.

He was very happy to get them chocolate cauldrons.

Gorbrin turned a matchstick into a hollow needle to inject the potion into the sweeties after sucking the insides out. The sticky mess accumulated they used with some chocolates taken from the other flavours to bribe Tony and Philip to let themselves be beaten up.

"Let her think you managed to sneak into Hogsmeade" said Bella "So she can declare that as your elder she's confiscating the sweets."

"She'll probably threaten to tell if we don't give them up" said Tony "And there's our way of not getting beaten on, 'cos we'd almost be bound to give them up then."

And the scene was set.

Priscilla heard her little brother saying, to the careful choreography of Bella using a sneakoscope

"Gosh it was worth the risk of nearly getting caught slipping into Hogsmead, these chocs are yummy!"

Predictable to the last, Priscilla pounced, waved her confederates as witnesses and demanded the rest of the chocolates be given to her.

"You're a bully Prissy" said Tony sulkily.

Priscilla laughed.

She didn't care what her brother thought; she had chocolates and she supposed she would share them with the others, especially as Zabini liked the cherry ones she did not.

Shortly thereafter there were howls of anguish as three rather mixed race people who were still QUITE recognisable gazed in horror at each other and fled to the nearest bathroom to find a mirror.

"YOU did this!" Priscilla flared, pointing at her brother.

"Never did" said Tony "We were bribed with chocolate to look like we were eating so you'd steal it."

"Yeah; you didn't have to take the chocs so you did it to yourselves" said Philip "Caveat Voleur as Professor Snape would say."

"WHAT is going on?" Miss Hardbroom suddenly appeared as she was wont to do.

"Oh Madam Hardbroom, we've been POISONED and turned into these dreadful forms!" howled Parkinson. It would not have worked on Professor Snape but it was worth trying on the new head of house.

"Poisoned by chocolates she and her cohorts stole" said Tony loudly.

Hardbroom regarded him.

"Indeed? And how come you acquired these poisoned chocolates?"

"They went into Hogsmeade against the rules!" said Priscilla.

"Actually Madam Hardbroom we lied about that where Priscilla was going to hear us" said Philip "Because we thought then she'd only demand them as blackmail instead of having her creeps beat on us."

"You knew the chocolates were, er, doctored then?"

"We didn't KNOW Madam Hardbroom" said Philip scrupulously "But we kind of drew the inference."

"Please Madam Hardbroom" said Bella standing "We did it because we were sick of their racist comments and we can't turn people into woodlice"

Mimi and Drusillina had also stood; and so did Gorbrin.

"I made notes on the potions" he said.

"And was anyone else in another house involved?" asked Miss Hardbroom who had learned fast enough that the three girls in Slytherin came as a set with Maud and Isabel in Gryffindor.

"I'm afraid Madam Hardbroom we couldn't possibly comment" said Bella.

"Very well. Erica go to the Gryffindor common room and ask for Maud Hubble and Isabel Nightshade to come to my office. Polyjuice potion I take it?"

"A variant" said Gorbrin.

"Well that will wear off soon enough; the ridicule for that period – you are ridiculous neither one thing nor another and not even proper half-breeds – will make you think twice before eating the sweets belonging to other people. It's as good a way to catch a thief as any other. As to racist comments, I have not heard you making any but as the rest of the common room are nodding confirmation I'd say your punishment was appropriate; even if it is NOT appropriate to be handed out by other children. The four of you, my office – WITH your notes on the variations Mr Malfoy."

Six children waited while Madam Hardbroom read through Gorbrin's careful notes – including the arithmantic ones.

Really the child was perhaps as much a genius in the field as Severus Snape himself! Madam Hardbroom had never heard that goblins were any great shakes as potioneers but maybe that was in general lack of opportunity – Senagra shone well enough in the OWL class after all – or maybe he was just a very special boy.

"I suppose you five first years involved Gorbrin because he was the best potioneer you knew who was less likely to tell you not to go ahead."

"More or less Madam Hardbroom" said Maud candidly "We thought about the Moorcrofts but they're rather elderly and Huffers besides."

Shona and Mike were fourteen; not Connie's definition of elderly but they were undoubtedly in Hufflepuff with the staid outlook that tended to imply.

"We also thought of Ming Chang who's as brilliant as Gorbrin but he's kind of erratic" said Isabel.

"And a bit slapdash" added Maud. Connie raised an eyebrow; that was a bit of a case of a pot calling a cauldron black; and Maud flushed.

"So we settled for cousin Gorbrin" said Bella "Because he's methodical as well as brilliant."

"And I wasn't displeased, because I've had my own trouble from Parkinson and her boys" said Gorbrin.

"Very well. I require your notes written out neatly and the results appended as your detention" said Connie "You may go as you were brought into it instead of being involved from the word go – one moment! Where did you get the boomslang skin?"

"I wrote home and asked mum to buy some 'cos she didn't know its significance" said Gorbrin "We took nothing from the potion stores, Madam Hardbroom, we shared out the costs of what needed buying and got parents to send it."

"Very well; your honesty, all of you, becomes you. I am pleased with you over that. Dismissed Mr Malfoy!"

Gorbrin departed, hoping the girls would not get into too much trouble.

"When did you plan this?" asked Connie crisply.

"On the train on the way back; it was a just-in-case plan, if they were as obnoxious as they were last term" said Bella "And when they spilled ink on Griselen's and Genavka's work that was just too much! Names you can ignore and things written in the loos but getting at someone's work isn't on!"

"Things written in loos?"

"Yes, you know – 'Erica's dad is a gobbo-poker' 'this loo smells because goblins use it' 'gob on this gobbo' – with a rather nasty picture – you know the sort of thing."

"No I don't" said Madam Hardbroom "That takes it rather to another level; nobody should have to look on such comments whilst undertaking a necessary action like using the lavatory. Are these outrages still there?"

"Some of them" said Bella "Lynx Black-Weasley and Jade Snape cleaned most of them off and threatened woodlousing the perpetrators if they caught them. We didn't rat them up; it was a matter for us as the stuff was aimed at us weevils and at the warts. It was another reason to ask Gorbrin in; he's a wart and Erica's brother too."

"Well I think you may write me out one hundred times 'I should not risk new potions even on racists' for me" said Madam Hardbroom "And I think in the future speaking to prefects who are in place to give you a recourse to older and wiser heads without involving the staff might be a good idea; even if only to ask their advice and get them to test any ah….concatenations you should produce. You appear to have tried to take care; but it was a little….extreme. especially as I understand by these notes it should last forty-eight hours."

"We didn't want it to wear off before they had a chance to fully appreciate their predicament, Madam Hardbroom" said Drusillina.

"We have to live with how we were born and have to take racist comments every day all day!" said Mimi "Why shouldn't they feel silly and what they despise most for a decent time? If we could have figured out how to dump them looking like that in Obscura Alley we would have done and let them see how it feels to have people point and sneer!"

"'Cos they do you know" said Bella "When we're out with Lucius, people nudge each other and point at Tanjela and the goblin kids and it's almost enough to make one feel embarrassed to be human when they display such bad manners. And having to take that at school too where we're all just supposed to be scholars isn't right."

"Your views are noted" said Connie, not harshly "But you are still not supposed to take matters into your own hands. Now go away before I add to your impositions!"

They went.

"Could have been much worse" said Bella "DID you see her face when she reached the bit about the extending potion? I thought I was going to burst with so much giggle wanting to escape!"

"I bet she does a round of the loos now" said Drusillina "To see for herself. Reckon she'll find the one Parkinson put on the ceiling?"

"I don't think Madam Hardbroom misses a flipping thing" said Mimi "And if she's at all like Daddy she's eavesdropping on us right now to find out more details of the misdeeds of Parkinson and her idiots."

Connie Hardbroom prided herself on not missing a thing.

The graffiti in the toilets was, some of it, quite vile.

The imputation on the ceiling about Meliandra Bulstrode and Gorbrin was crude and quite filthy.

It had also been written using a wand.

Madam Hardbroom placed this particular toilet out-of-bounds with a summoned notice, both to avoid anyone else seeing such filth and so she could take Professor Dweemer in there.

Madam Hardbroom had rather set ideas about males in female toilets and had been utterly shocked by the MSHG convening in a female toilet and shower room.

That nobody except the MSHG used it was neither here nor there; and she had complained to Professor Dumbledore.

Who had refused to ban the presence of men and boys there on the grounds that it was less a toilet than a centre of ritual power which happened to have plumbing in it.

Connie attended the MSHG meetings occasionally purely because with Krait in Austria there were no female staff involved and she felt it proper.

It was disconcerting to overhear small girls take their problems to Professors Lupin, Black or Khan who were known quantities and could be expected to help; though there had been a look of wild horror on Remus Lupin's face as he struggled to explain to a child that she had not been cursed to cause blood to come out of intimate areas but that it was a part of growing up. Connie had been pleased that Professor Lupin suggested that the child in question should talk to his wife.

They would trust her to ask such questions of eventually; Connie recalled Maud's mother Mildred sobbing in her bed, convinced she was dying, and how it had brought the silly, rather difficult girl closer to her. Poor Mildred! She always had such good intentions and such a cackhanded way of going about them!

Which was a long train of thought from Percival Dweemer's examination of the words on the ceiling.

"If I was you I'd get Willow Prince-Black to look" said Percival. "She's a wand expert. I can hazard a guess but….she knows wands like no-one knows wands, even Ollivander."

Willow regarded the writing having apported in on request.

"Ash, thirteen inches, Fwooper feather core" she said "Rather a superficial person, brittle and with no sense of the realities of life."

"Thank you Madam Black" said Connie.

"You're welcome!" said Willow.

Connie sent for Priscilla; who was still part goblin.

"Oh Madam Hardbroom, have you a potion to put me right?" whined Priscilla. "They ought to have THIEF on their foreheads in boils for stealing your boomslang skin, that's what Professor Snape does!"

Connie regarded her thoughtfully.

"As it happens they bought their own; since the children in question are NOT despicable little thieves" she said. "Show me your wand".

Priscilla got it out, looking confused; and angry that Bella Black and co would not have their precious image spoiled with boils spelling thief. Bought their own! Who would have expected them to do that with stores in a dungeon?

"Ash, thirteen inches, fwooper feather core?" said Connie.

"Yes ma'am" said Priscilla.

"Ah" said Connie, taking up the wand. "_Priori Incantato_"

Priscilla knew that spell; Willow Prince had used it to catch her out at lying. Her heart sank.

It took several spells revealed – mostly jinxes – to reach the wand writing spell. The ghost image of the words was quite clear.

"Go to your bedroom Priscilla" said Connie "While I decide what to do about you. No, I will keep your wand. It is confiscated."

Priscilla stumbled off. Suddenly she was scared! There was no compromise in Madam Hardbroom's voice and a look of sick disgust in her eyes. And she must live with the ridicule still of this awful form, even worse perhaps than living for a week with the word 'thief' emblazoned across her forehead and 'liar' across her cheeks and nose for attempting to get Madam Pomfrey to remove Professor Snape's punishment. Somehow Priscilla knew that this was going to be bad!


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Lionel Dell, on Madam Hardbroom's request, toured the male toilets looking for vile graffiti.

About the worst he found – which made him chuckle – was in the senior lavatory where someone – it looked like Jackman's untidy hand – had scrawled 'Lionel Dell is a womaniser'.

Under it in – he thought – Tycho Salaman's handwriting was 'quick, give me his address, signed Scarlette Woman'.

Lionel grinned.

Neither comment was in keeping with the dignity of a sixth former but he liked Tycho's way of rebuke.

Otherwise the graffiti was fairly normal, of the so-and-so loves such-and-such variety and one game of hangman played – presumably – whilst queuing for the bath.

There was the appallingly bad joke 'q: what do you get if you cross Professor Snape with an Acromantula?' and several answers given; ' eight eyes legilimensing you'; 'a free funeral'; 'something basilisks flee from' and 'you mean he isn't?'

Lionel chuckled; Severus would enjoy that.

Really the boys toilets were relatively innocuous.

Probably because they knew he, Lionel, would be down on any writer of anything nasty like a ton of bricks; and because prior to the exchange with Madam Hardbroom, Severus was likely to appear almost anywhere prowling at night and would soon have any writers of filth brought to book.

Presumably someone had been writing filth in the girls' loos; he would have to ask Melody. Melody would be likely to clean such things off and would thoroughly jinx anyone she caught at it; but might not follow something up if she had it cleaned off so no harm was done.

He reported back accordingly to Madam Hardbroom that there was nothing to take exception to in the boys' toilets.

"You mean there is some graffiti?"

Lionel shrugged.

"Of course; it's an accepted form of self expression for kids away from home who can perhaps only express their feelings by performing minor acts of vandalism either as a protest against the system as a whole or of the 'Dell stinks' variety. Unless it gets seriously personal and offensive no-one takes any notice. It cleans off readily enough. And it gives an excellent detention for Mr Filch to set for those who irritate him; 'scrub down and re-varnish the toilet doors you 'orrible little varmint' you know! I dare say the likes of Phineas Nigellus would roar about it but we aren't living in the nineteenth century!"

Constance bit her tongue.

After all, in many ways at Miss Cackle's they HAD been living in the nineteenth century.

Lionel was a well balanced lad who was liked and trusted by the rest of the staff; and he had been one of the young people trusted and permitted to come on the raid to the other school – Prince Peak she must learn to call it. He was no great potioneer but he put in enough effort that if he failed his NEWT it would not be through his own fault.

She would do well to listen to him as head boy of Slytherin as well as Head Boy of the school.

At least Crabbe and Zabini were not involved in the muck-spreading of their older leader.

She went to Professor Dumbledore.

Priscilla Parkinson – still a part goblin – went to see the Head.

It was not a pleasant interview.

Dumbledore had read Severus' report of her behaviour the previous year and quoted the sardonic House Head to her as part of his dissection of her character. He also had a report from Krait from the girl's first year, for Krait was wont to keep an eye on the girls in her husband's house, especially the younger ones.

Constance Hardbroom had asked for the girl's expulsion; and Dumbledore gazed on the truculent and obdurate face before him and sighed.

"You have been in trouble from almost the first moment you got to Hogwarts Priscilla" he said "This last action is disgusting. And for your collective sins last year a less tolerant head of house than Severus Snape would have expelled you. As you have not learned from the punishments he gave you I fear I have no choice; your wand will be broken as you cannot be trusted with it and you will leave summarily."

"What still looking like this?" squealed Priscilla.

"Oh it will wear of in a few days" said Dumbledore.

"I can't face my parents looking like this!" cried Priscilla in very real fear.

"Why? Surely your appearance is of no account to your parents if they are assured you will return to normal. It's not like being covered in boils explaining your sins, is it?"

"But – people might see and think my parents have a GOBLIN in the family. They won't have me back!"

"Perhaps that is a deficiency in them that you should reflect on then as you wait for it to wear off. Your fear is genuine; you will spend the rest of your time here in the sick bay as decent people will not want to associate with you for your low, vulgar manners and vile mind. I pity you in a way, in your parents and their associates from whom I presume you must have learned such words and concepts; but I cannot have a child who expresses themselves in such a way in with decent children who do not – fortunately – understand the extent of what you wrote. Perhaps your parents might send you to the free school where you will be able to associate with those of a similar level of expression as yourself."

Priscilla, unaware just how vulgar she and her family were, burst into tears at that idea, that Professor Dumbledore ranked her with those awful commoners from filthy streets and alleyways!

Maybe it would impinge and get her ready to think and change.

But Dumbledore feared that it would not.

Priscilla was too self centred to ever truly see herself as others saw her; and as such, only HER view of the world mattered to her. Her racism was not for any reason other than that she found goblins ugly and did not see why a subservient race should associate with her as equals. They were an inconvenience to her.

A grand hatred for an event in her or her family's past would be more understandable and acceptable; but it was simple distain writ large and become a feud because the goblins in her House would not kowtow to her, and such a feud had almost even become habit.

Rather a dirty habit; and that was why she was being expelled.

The bad weather continued; and Ross Tuthill as head of Muggle Games, despite only being in the fourth, had to contact St Jodoc's to say that a cricket fixture this term was unlikely as the Hogwarts cricket pitch was under two feet of icy water unless they fancied playing cricket on skates. Quidditch practice happened desultorily as it was above the pond and quagmire laughingly known as the cricket pitch; but fierce winds limited that too. The teams were grouchy and not happy that all the matches interhouse would have to be played in the exam term.

Mad, Chad, Mei, Lydia Leo and Polly felt it was about time for the Mad marauders to break out in mischief as a reaction to all this; and wanted to plan something really amusing.

"Like sending up the more pompous of the Ravenclaws" said Mei, who was sick of some of her more self-satisfied house mates.

Lydia giggled.

"After Grace found the Diadem that Fishface had nicked, didn't Professor Filch put it on display in your common room?" she asked.

"Yes, next to the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw" said Mei.

"Well if we get a cheap tin tiara and transfigure it to look like the real thing" said Lydia "And put a harmlessish but amusing curse on it…."

"Like the babbling curse, if only anyone notices the difference with Ravenclaws….." said Leo. Mad and Chad poked him on general principles but not hard.

"But Professor Flitwick warned that the opening of the mind it can do is potentially dangerous" said Mei.

"And y'think the pompous are going to remember that if there's written evidence that Rowena Ravenclaw thought any true Ravenclaw could cope?" said Lydia.

"And we provide the written proof?" said Chad, eyes sparkling.

"Exactly" said Lydia "And – and say they have to wear the diadem and wear it oh, during the hours of darkness at an arithmantically auspicious time for their own name which will sound convincing and we watch all of them come and make fools of themselves."

"Won't work" said Mad "Not on more than one; if the first starts babbling then anyone else coming along isn't going to think 'oh this was an untrue Ravenclaw' but 'oh this is a wind up'. We need to put a delayed action on the curse."

"Crumbs! How do we do that?" said Lydia.

"Dunno" said Mad "But on a wet Saturday have we really got anything better to do than library work anyway?"

They found a delayed-action charm in a NEWT level enchanting book; Mei, the oldest, was in the fourth but that did not trouble Marauders who used Severus dog-eared NEWT level potions book to copy into their own books.

They copied it out carefully to glue into the exercise book full of useful stuff that various Marauders had researched – generally for pranks – next to the copy of Gorbrin's non specific Polyjuice Potion that the Marauders felt worthy of inclusion into the Wicked Deeds book as they dubbed it.

A trip into Hogsmeade purchased a cheap tiara and a very old recipe book – some of which recipes were potions that Lydia pulled out for more detailed perusal later on – and Mei set to work transfiguring the tiara while Mad and Chad wrote the words of a suitable poem for Lydia to transcribe onto the blank flyleaf for inclusion into the body of the book.

The flyleaf read as thus.

"Having conversed with my great grandmother who knew Rowena Ravenclaw, she imparted to me this knowledge. That any true son or daughter of Ravenclaw House should work out a proper time during the hours of darkness with due arithmantic consideration for their own name and wearing the Ravenclaw Diadem recite this poem they would receive the gift of enhanced intellect that, whilst seeming as nothing at first, would grow gently and fill their thoughts with profound brilliance for evermore. Here is the poem recorded whilst it is still fresh within my mind.

Oh bless Rowena Ravenclaw

And in her name I thus implore

More brains to think for evermore!"

"It's a bit of a doggerel" said Lydia critically before writing it out.

"Yes but it has the advantage that they can remember it and actually say it" said Mad.

"We could write a long sonnet on the same principles but they'd never manage to learn it surreptitious like to chant" said Chad "And think on, it's kind of a bit like a chanted spell; it's iambic octameter in three lines, twenty four syllables, arithmantically quite powerful. You have to work on the principle that a Ravenclaw will check things like that."

"Well you know Ravenclaws" shrugged Lydia "I think it's almost ready to sit up and wag its tail but what do I know? I'm only a Gryffindor and we like out poetry to have tunes to sing to and nice easy ones at that."

"Right; let's get the charm on the tiara" said Mei "And then we need to set them up. What about Lydia or Leo having found the book in the library and telling us, their Ravenclaw friends about it?"

"Just loud enough to be overheard by straining or using eavesdropping charms" said Lydia "And then you go and look for it – hey, what if we put it on the shelf of 'not to be removed from the library'?"

"POIFECT!" said Mei.

The stealthy interest by Ravenclaws was wonderful.

"And we need to come in to watch" said Lydia "There IS a marauder passage but it's into one of the bedrooms."

"Polly can apparate" said Leo. "We make too much noise inside."

"Well why not come through the door?" said Mei.

"Isn't it dishonourable for you to give us your password?" said Lydia who always asked the Bloody Baron for the Slytherin password as he counted her as Slytherin as well as Gryffindor.

"Oh, we don't have a password; you have to answer a riddle" said Mei "And if you can't you don't get to come in. You have to knock once; the knocker will tell you if it's a good answer, if it isn't you have to keep trying until you get it right."

"Crumbs!" said Leo "No WONDER Ravenclaw house is full of weirdos! We'll use the invisibility cloak of course?"

"Absolutely; it IS marauder mischief after all" said Lydia "AND the marauders' map so we can see who's approaching." She giggled. "I'm really looking forward to this!"

The stair to Ravenclaw tower was long and steep.

"This is how they keep fit then" said Leo "And I thought that as they were such library worms they had to use spells!"

The door at the top of the stairs was a plain door without a keyhole, and adorned only with a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.

Lydia knocked once.

The beak opened; and a soft, musical voice asked,

"What sounds are there in the wood when no-one is there to hear them?"

"Same ones as normal I suppose" said Leo, prosaically.

Lydia said,

"Sounds do not cease for the absence of sentient listening as all nature hears its own living flux of existence."

"Far more elegantly and positively put than the boy; excellent" said the eagle, and the door opened.

"Posey gits" said Leo once they were safely through.

"Ravenclaws" said Lydia laconically.

The Mad Marauders huddled rather snugly under the invisibility cloak, glad it was not hot weather and not displeased to be close enough to keep each other warm. They watched footsteps appear on the marauder's map of the tower – Mei, Mad and Chad had mapped Ravenclaw tower on the original map – and read the name 'Millicent Goodchild'.

"That'll be a good 'un!" said Mei "Lying little toerag she is, love to hear her babbling total truth tomorrow!"

Millicent was in the fifth and resented not being a prefect.

Millicent lifted the false diadem from the wig stand on which it was displayed, and rather self-consciously placed it on her head. Then she got out a crib-sheet to recite the poem.

"Crumbs if she can't learn THAT bit of doggerel she needs more brains" Mad whispered as Millicent went ponderously on her way.

"I thought you said it was iambic something?" said Lydia.

"Yeah, but it's still barking" said Mad "shh, someone else coming!"

Someone else was Achille Crouch-Villeneuve, in Millicent's year; both victims so far delighting Lydia, Millicent being the unpleasant sister of a protégé of Jade, Godfrey Goodchild, and Achille having offended against Lydia's technical cousin and biological half sister Erica.

Achille did not need a crib sheet; but he did approach the marauders under their cloak. They held their breath; had he seen them?"

No.

He merely wanted to approach the fireplace to admire himself in the over-mantle mirror.

"Git" said Chad when Achille had left.

"Sure he's not related to your father, Mad?" laughed Mei.

"Dunno; yes I do though, and I think he is, second hand as you might say; there's Hellibore in there and the Lockharts and the Hellibores and the Hallows are tied together like Malfoys and Yaxleys and Bullivants. Egbert Hellibore was Prime Minister back when the Voldemort trouble started and he resigned pretty quick to avoid looking bad over failing to deal with it."

In the same year they also caught Lakshmi Indrani; and in the sixth form they caught Austin Dreycott, Amber Connell and her friend Romillie Travis, giggling and supporting each other having worked out that they were close together in time arithmantically.

The biggest catch was house head Amiya Green; and Mei hissed a muffled hiss of disapproval that she would stoop to lend herself to a surreptitious attempt to get more brains right before NEWTs.

The catching of four of Mei's own year including stuffy and humourless Bertam Corbin was almost an anticlimax; that was the youngest they took since they had been working the middle and senior school more and in Mad's and Chad's opinion the rest of their own year were unlikely to feel they ought to be out of bed in the middle of the night.

Breakfast next morning was sublime.

Eleven Ravenclaws babbled at the tops of their voices all their secret ambitions and prejudices and in one case details of her love life that no-one really wanted to know.

Professor Flitwick, with a pained look, dropped a silence charm on the whole table and tapped the offending Ravenclaws on the shoulder with his wand and led them away to sick bay.

The returned to school next morning chastened and much quieter.

No further action was taken.

In house, Professor Flitwick had discovered what they had done to so open themselves to ridicule; and realised that there had to be Ravenclaw connivance to have copied the diadem so well.

He declared to the whole house that the delayed action charm was beautifully done and that he credited whoever had done it with excellent brains – which Mei was glad to pass on to Lydia, their top chanter – and pointed out that those who had been caught had been guilty of both pride and a lack of prudence and that it had been a learning experience for them. He pointed out that anyone who trusted something just because it was written in a book that seemed old was a fool; and reminded them – most never even knew – that Tom Riddle had set up a trap in an old diary that had led to the opening of the Chamber of Secrets and the release of the Basilisk in Harry Potter's time. He adjured then to bring any such thing they found to him in future or tell him about it if it was in a book not to be removed from the library – as they should have done straight away.

"Well Mei and Mad and Chad didn't when their Gryff and Slyther friends first found it" said Achille Crouch- Villeneuve.

"Ever been HAD you poor prune?" said Mei "How else do you think we drew your attention to it when we'd written it? DURR you really DO need extra brains; and oh boy what a ponce you looked prancing up and down and admiring yourself in the mirror with our tiara on your head, seven sickles from Gladrags Wizardwear in their kiddyrange. For little girls at their first party."

Flitwick absently disarmed Achille as the boy went for his wand.

"Rather more taunting than necessary Miss Chang" he said "A beautifully pulled prank that caused no serious harm to anyone, nicely constructed, beautifully put over with just the right level of er, hook to it. I don't want to hear any more about you and your friends for the rest of the school year however; that was sufficient."

"Yes Professor" Mei beamed at him.

Old Flitwick was such a sweetie!

Leo and Lydia and Polly were a little bemused to get away with it totally; Madam McGonagall and Severus – and they suspected Connie – would set some kind of punishment however light on principle.

Ravenclaw WERE mad.

Not that they were complaining!

So they bought a box of chocolate cauldrons for Professor Flitwick and painstakingly transfigured them all into chocolate diadems instead for being a good sport.

Professor Flitwick told them sternly it was nothing to do with being a good sport but more to do with appreciating skill and wit scientifically applied.

He accepted the chocolates anyhow!

Filius Flitwick had appreciated the cleverness of the joke and how it had been weighted and designed to catch those who displayed the worse elements of the Ravenclaw House.

He had however been extremely disappointed that one of the victims should have been Amiya Green. She had already let him down to some extent in her temper tantrum and refusal to accept Professor Snape's directions to study on her own; and now this.

He mentioned both incidents in a private interview with the girl, pointing out that had she but had the wit to realise it, Professor Snape had done her a compliment in directing her to the books from which he had taught himself when he was at school.

Miss Green, who had not realised that Professor Snape was self taught, had not thought to see it that way and was somewhat silenced.

Flitwick also pointed out that for a girl of almost eighteen to be caught by children of fourteen and thirteen was rather shameful especially in a prefect and that he hoped she would shape up and actually justify the faith he had placed in her in suggesting her as Head of House to Professor Dumbledore since he disliked being made a fool of. He also warned her that if she was guilty of any more childishness he would strip from her not only her headship of the house but also her prefecture.

That was a shock to Amiya; who was not a bad girl, just rather self-satisfied and self centred over her schoolwork.

She promised faithfully to do better and left Flitwick's office chastened and determined not to make a fool of him, for she was immensely fond of the gentle little Professor.

She was big enough to go to see Mei and say,

"That was a clever prank, Mei; you suckered us royally."

"Oh Amiya! I didn't want to catch YOU, not the head of house, you're someone we look UP to, not someone who'd cheat at NEWTs!" Mei blurted out, being as she was a rather direct little girl.

Amiya paled.

That hurt more than anything Flitwick had said.

"I – I never thought about it being cheating" she said "I just wanted to be cleverer…. I thought if it was a direction from Rowena Ravenclaw that it was all right, it never occurred to me to think it was underhand. I'm sorry; I guess I've let you down. And I let Professor Snape down – did you know, he taught HIMSELF chanting?"

"Yes, I knew; I run with his daughter, 'member?" said Mei "Look, if you didn't think it was underhand I – I guess that's what matters really. You didn't MEAN to get a mean advantage over others, I s'pose you thought the rest would too?"

"Well, yes I did" said Amiya "It seemed…. Well, good to strike when the iron was hot, almost like it was an omen that we could do it before we left school. You're unwholesomely clever"

Mei grinned.

"I've had that accusation levelled at me more than once!" she agreed. "I say, what you said about your chanting….did you want a copy of the book list?"

"I'd love one; why can your friend Lydia get one without him knowing I didn't behave well?"

"Nah, we'll copy out the one you threw away; I snatched it out of the flames, well worth a burned wrist, how d'you think we held the delayed charm on the diadem so well?"

"You MONKEYS!" said Amiya "That means you caught ME twice…yes please I should very much like a copy; I shan't have much time to catch up what I missed but perhaps I can get copies from Smith's and study after school."

"If you did, I heard Professor Snape was looking for a chanting teacher at Prince Peak, at least for the lower school; he wants it as an OWL for everyone you know; and then he might teach you post NEWT stuff too you know" said Mei "So long as you were prepared to use it to fight off Odessa. If you don't go for it I might in a few years time."

"Well, it's something to think about" said Amiya, torn between having the chance to learn more and having to do all the uncomfortable things that they had done in the fight against Voldemort when she was a third year, and the terror of the Fey invasion.

Mei was a decent kiddie to think of it anyway.

Severus was blissfully unaware that his original suggestion had been spurned, acquired by third and fourth years and re-offered to the original target; he was having his own problems.

Morgana Fairchild in the lower sixth was not good at potions; but she was ambitious for as many NEWTs and as high grades as she could get having had the expectations of a Hogwarts child dangled before her. And Potions seemed to be the only class taught to anything near the standard these strange new Professors considered acceptable.

And she was no good at it.

There were more ways to stuff a cauldron than one.

Accordingly Morgana approached Professor Snape after the class one day and smiled her best most devastating smile at him.

He should be flattered with terrible scars like that; everyone knew that his lovely wife hardly gave him time of day save to make sarcastic comments. Gossip was she was in love with handsome Professor Fraser, which many of the girls thought quite reasonable; the Fraser fan club and the Von Strang fan club could get quite acrimonious in their discussions of who was the best looking.

The Prince Peak students had yet to learn that the sparring Krait and Severus did was an expression of their love; and being private people nor did they put their feelings on display. Even as they had yet to learn – if they ever did – that Severus had two other women besides Krait in the persons of the Kitchen Tyrant Sirri and Madam Parnassus.

Morgana put on her best breathy and pleading voice.

"Oh Professor Snape, I find it so hard to GET potions you know though of course I try!"

"Of course you try" said Severus "People who don't generally end up in detention gutting horned toads."

That wasn't quite the right reaction. She tried a flirtatious little wriggle.

"I'd do just about ANYTHING to get some private tuition" she said.

Severus regarded her as inscrutably as Mad and Chad's song implied was his general expression.

"Would you" he said.

"Oh YES sir!" she breathed.

Actually his face might be ruined but he had a slim, muscular build, it might not be such a pain after all.

"Very well; you can have private tuition instead of physical jerks or whatever Miss Drill calls it on Thursdays and stay on afterwards to help clear up."

Morgana beamed.

What a clever fiction to suggest she'd be helping clear up, for surely the house elves would do that!

It would be something to tell other people however.

On Thursday Morgana duly knocked on the potions room door and went in, her hair loose and her top button undone.

Madam Malfoy-Snape regarded her coldly.

"For goodness sake, Miss Fairchild, how do you expect to have a lesson in remedial potions with your hair flopping about ready to catch on fire or drop and spoil your potions? Plait it back quickly you silly child! And do your top button up, it's not hot enough to warrant that and it looks sloppy. Where is your tie? My good kid" as Morgana fished it out of her pocket "Just because we're changing the uniform next year does NOT mean you can discard uniform rules as you choose; and as a member of the sixth you should be setting an example. Now hurry up; you're wasting time."

Madam Malfoy Snape was undeniably a good teacher and Morgana did have to admit she was learning a lot. She did ask,

"Isn't Professor Snape going to teach me?"

Madam Malfoy-Snape gave her a look.

"With a girl of nubile age on her own? MOST improper even by the standards of those of us from a more modern world than Miss Cackle! And it's for his protection, my girl, not yours; for though he never would lay an improper finger on you accusations can be too easily made and a male teacher is vulnerable."

"So what about clearing up? I mean…."

"Oh he'll muck in and help" said Krait "He likes to supervise in his own dungeon – not that this is a dungeon, it feels very weird to do potions upstairs we may have to move it. Well you wouldn't expect to place house elves at risk moving things that could be dangerous and them not trained to know what is and what isn't, would you?"

Morgana had not thought of that.

Well, at least she was getting the extra lessons without having to have sex to get them.

Severus had known fine well what Morgana had been getting at; he was a lot less shy and naïve that he had been before Krait burst into his life.

And Morgana got to watch them work amicably together sorting out the classroom; and surprised a smile between them that gave her to think furiously.

She was a ruthless, ambitious girl but she was nobody's fool.

And buckling down to work for Madam Malfoy Snape was actually likely to get her what she wanted anyway, a better grade.

There were to be changes at the school; and moving potions into a dungeon was one of the lesser ones. At the moment the girls all had their own rooms; and Krait announced to the school that this custom would cease.

"Not only does it put pressure on the youngest, all alone in a dark room and nobody there if say she feels ill; but it takes away the whole school experience of talking after lights out and risking being caught, midnight feasts and other er, perfidious peregrinations" she said. "There's nothing like slipping down the corridor in the middle of the night bent on some mischief and wondering if you're going to get there or whether Professor Snape, who rarely – so the pupils of Hogwarts will tell you – if ever sleeps, popping up like the ghost of Christmas past to catch you at your nefarious misdeeds. Dorm wide wickedness is all part of the fun of school. Illegal and punished if caught, but still part of the fun!"

This was all new to the girls of Prince Peak; but it sounded good, and some of those to be withdrawn mourned sincerely their parents' decisions!


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

The Easter Holidays were greeted with great relief by everybody except the exam students who had the run of the library for revision purposes during the Easter holidays.

The Prowling Marauders preferred to prowl on the moor now the weather was finally better desultorily testing each other. The New Marauders had laid down the maxim that if you didn't learn it when you first studied it no amount of cramming would get it in your head; and that the purpose of revision was just exactly that, to be a reminder and to check if something that had been hard first time round was easier once you had studied further.

They used the rhyming revision notes the New Marauders had produced, now printed under Malfoy Publications and available to all students; but they were supremely confident, even Jade who had missed most of the fourth year's teaching and had read through the entire year's syllabus over Christmas to find out if there was anything she did not know.

As the only thing she had not covered working with her parents or in the MSHG was geomancy she pestered Sirius to run over the couple of term's subjects she was not covering and soon found it was easy enough to catch up.

"She'll get all 'O's you watch" said Lynx "Even though she is a year younger than us; kid could take seven NEWTs and pass them all. No need to worry about Jade."

Jade grinned.

She did not think she was being conceited to agree with Lynx; at one time it did seem as though her life might depend on having knowledge way beyond her years; and besides, she HAD been knocking around with much older people and it was a little difficult NOT to absorb Knowledge when Hermione Granger was busy lecturing.

Others had less busy holidays; young Malfoys of all descriptions who now called Lucius 'dad' were getting to know each other better, and Ian and his siblings were finally accepting the reality of being Malfoys and were relaxing.

So long as they roped in Finn there were enough to field two quidditch teams of those old enough to play a really fun game, Zelinn and Zakala being a little young at seven and a half but game enough not to cry if things got a little rough and old enough to play one on each team to make it fair, with Gorbrin and Erica each captaining a team. They played girls against boys – with one of the younger twins voted a temporary boy – and then they played with teams picked one at a time to mix things around a bit with the rule that the first pick had to be the opposites sex to the team leader and the next the same and so on.

It broke a lot of ice and helped them get to know each other no end. Finn had to accept that the children at least knew she was a girl and was left wondering if Master Lucius and the ladies knew or not; but as nobody made any comment, she did not either.

Finn wondered a little wistfully whether it might have been fun at Hogwarts; but the stories about Priscilla Parkinson and her cronies were shocking. And Finn knew that she had been taught too well how to do harmful magics amongst the fey and might well have acted instinctively and overly violently if attacked in any way.

Being a servant and playing servile also had the advantage of helping her to learn self control and only use harmless jinxes that would not get Master Lucius into trouble.

All these Parkinsons seemed to be unpleasant types; Pansy Parkinson had not given up 'just dropping in on passing' to simper at Lucius.

Finn, Gorbrin, Erica and Bella put their fertile heads together to see how they might get rid of the girl. Griselen, Genavka and Ian declared those four more than equal to the task but pledged to do anything needful to help.

"Remembering that we can't use magic" said Bella "'Cos Lucius will get into trouble if we do."

"I can; I'm a servant" said Finn.

"That IS a point" said Gorbrin.

"But better to get rid of her subtly" said Erica.

"We could make a coffin and ask her what colour lining she wants?" suggested Bella.

"Hmm, we read different dictionaries on the definition of 'subtle' methinks" said Erica.

"Potions?" said Gorbrin "The sort that make her do something so totally embarrassing that she dare not show her face again?"

"Veritaserum's forbidden without a licence" said Erica.

"Amortentia with a bit of Jark's hair in to make her fancy him?" said Bella.

"Poor Jark, what's he done to you?" said Gorbrin.

"Whacked my backside with his slipper for playing with knobs inside the Rolls" said Bella.

"So I should hope" said Erica "Those knobs can be almost as dangerous as a wand! Cars aren't toys you know, not unless you're grown up anyway."

"Euphoria Elixir WITHOUT peppermint?" said Gorbrin.

"Are you nuts? That's a NEWT level potion!"

"I could make it" said Gorbrin "I know how. I just never would before because it cost more than Gorbrin Gan Tobak of Umbrous Place North could afford. I'd happily blow all my pocket money to stop dad looking haunted every time the cow gets announced."

"What's that about peppermint?"

"I heard Ed Dinalt tell Lionel Dell to use Peppermint in it to stop the side effects of excessive singing and nose tweaking" said Gorbrin.

The others were listening now.

"Could you INcrease the side effects?" said Bella.

"I could put a large pinch of alihotsy in not a small one" said Gorbrin cautiously

"Is it too simple just to give her a hate potion so she doesn't want dad any more?" said Erica.

"Yes" said Bella "It's not funny enough."

"You are awful sometimes, Bella" said Erica.

"She has a point though" said Gorbrin "Hate potions like love potions can wear off; then she'll be back. If she's so totally misbehaved and embarrassed herself she won't. End of. Specially if she's at all like her cousin Priscilla who hated being made to look silly. If I brew an elixir to induce euphoria, Finn, d'you reckon you can get it in her drink?"

"Of course I can! Child's play for a page" said Finn scornfully "And if she blames me and goes for me, Master Lucius will be awfu' throng wi' her!"

It required a trip into town for ingredients; and Jark was happy to oblige when Bella said,

"It's to get rid of that Parkinson bitch once and for all and if you don't take us we'll have to use what we have and sacrifice YOU for daddy by making a love potion to make her fall in love with you."

Bella declared that having her ears well boxed by Jark for that was well worth it to see his face.

"Blackmail aside, to get rid o' that bitch is well worth a trip into town" said Jark "You ain't going to do away with her are you?"

"Gosh no, just make her make an idiot of herself" said Gorbrin "with slightly pepped up Elixir of Euphoria."

Jark chuckled.

"Ar, you can make a fool o' yourself without it being pepped up" he said "Bought some once in a pub, for a laugh; had a great time, but oh boy! When I thought about what we'd all got up to, was my face red!"

"What DID you get up to?" asked Bella curiously.

Jark flushed.

"Never you mind, Miss Bella" he said repressively. "Just take it from me it's got some uncommon embarrassing side effects!"

"Not if it's brewed with peppermint apparently" said Gorbrin. "Naturally I SHAN't be picking any peppermint."

"Well, Mr Gorbrin, if you make any extra and you want to shift it, I can find buyers no trouble" said Jark "It's not a controlled substance like Felix Felicis is; terrible black market there is in that."

"Why? You can buy Felix so long as you don't use it during sporting events, exams or elections" said Gorbrin.

Jark tapped his nose.

"Because the less perfect batches still sell for good money because they make people feel good!" he said "Heard there's some people PREFER the imperfect batches and the feelings of invincibility they get; stupid I calls it, stand to reason if you've not got the good stuff, or you're overdosing on the good stuff you're riding for a fall. But there's them as don't care, them as use it the way some folks use booze."

This was a revelation to Gorbrin.

Also a shock that anyone might misuse a potion he saw as the most special potion that could be made to be treated with utmost respect.

"I guess I'm going to need to know more about that sometime, Jark" he said "I'd be obliged if you could find and quote me facts."

Jark laughed.

"Heh, you was BORN to be a Malfoy, Mr Gorbrin" he said "Needing everything all precise and ready to deal someone a body blow 'cos you can't keep your nose outa someone else's trouble; just like Mister Lucius!"

"I take that as a compliment" said Gorbrin.

"Why, Merlin's snotty hankies boy, it was meant as one!" said Jark.

Gorbrin called in the others to help pass ingredients and prepare them for him – under very precise instructions – because it wouldn't do them any harm to learn, because they really did want to be involved and because it was fun pretending to be Professor Snape and making snide comments in his own potions dungeon, otherwise the cupboard under the stairs.

The potion turned the proper sunny yellow the book said it should; so that was right.

The drew straws to see who was going to test it and Genavka lost.

It was excellent; Genavka giggled, pulled noses, hiccupped and took all her clothes off.

They left her locked in the bedroom to come out of it and flasked the potion most carefully.

"I can't picture Jark taking his clothes off" said Bella.

"Just forget Jark; it's best not to even GO there" said Gorbrin hastily who was a whole year older and a lower class of upbringing removed from Bella in terms of understanding of adult pleasures and could make his own shrewd guesses about how Jark and friends had behaved in mixed company.

When Pansy Parkinson 'just dropped in' – patronising to Tanjela for her race, to Charlotte for her lack of magic and to Narcissa for being the oldest -

"Oh yes Narcissa dear, of course you must sit down, HOW do you enjoy being a grandmother?" – being one of her offerings.

Narcissa enjoyed full well being a grandmother; but not the tone of voice in which that snide little speech was delivered. She smiled a brittle smile.

"Oh very well, thank you; and my grandsons are of an age with my younger children of course too" she said, just to remind the girl that she wasn't past her sell by date so far as LUCIUS was concerned.

Lucius lusted happily after all his girls; which was why the possibility of adding Finn to their roster was no threat to the other three.

Lucius needed women.

It had been one reason he had been so ill natured when Voldemort had carefully driven wedges between him and Narcissa.

When he was satisfied he was even tempered and genial.

Most of the time anyway. But people had to go out of their way to irritate a Lucius in love.

Finn arrived with drinks and knelt subserviently to Parkinson first, proffering the tray.

Finn had learned a lot about servants and masters working for Lucius; and she knew exactly how to place the goblets on the tray to make sure Parkinson picked the right one. It was all in the psychology.

Finn duly knelt to the other women, something Lucius had broken her of at home; but this was for games and they made no comment.

Parkinson expected subservience from an elf, even a strangely blue and larger than normal one.

"Lucius must have his conceits, mustn't he" she tittered. "Odd looking creature, isn't it?"

"Funny" murmured Narcissa "I could have sworn you said something about creatures, were you looking out of the window my dear? I see no creatures in here."

Finn cast Narcissa a look of adoration.

Narcissa did not let anyone call her down either.

Parkinson drank deeply, waiting for Lucius to join them.

Which he did in time for her to start laughing, pull his nose, and start taking her clothes off.

The children, watching through the window with a muggle style periscope from upstairs thought it hugely amusing.

So did Finn. Narcissa did a double take and Gorbrin swore he had never admired her so much as then for she must have guessed what was happening and yet she continued to regard Parkinson with frozen hauteur and a faintly disgusted expression. Charlotte stared open mouthed.

"Miss Parkinson, have you been DRINKING?" said Tanjela.

Parkinson giggled and declared that she loved drinking Lucius' lovely wine and she could suck on other things too.

Gorbrin sent Bella and the twins and Ian out at this point.

"I'm not a total innocent!" Ian protested.

"Well maybe not but it's my duty to protect my kid brother from dark creatures and naked Pansy Parkinson" said Gorbrin pompously.

That had his brothers and sisters rolling around on the ground as the final straw in hysterical laughter and they missed the rest.

Finn told them later that Pansy had laid on the ground giggling and invited Lucius to go riding.

They had left her there and asked Reedy to wait and see that she did not drown on vomit or anything and then see her out.

It was a very successful potion.

It was even more successful from Gorbrin's point of view as Reedy prepared him his favourite pudding for tea and Lucius slipped him five galleons and Narcissa suggested taking all the children to the muggle circus for a treat.

Bella enjoyed the circus.

"Gosh, do you think Professor Khan looks like those gorgeous tigers?" she breathed "They have such FLUFFY white tummies!"

"Somehow I don't think Professor Khan is going to welcome comments about his fluffy white tummy" said Gorbrin with the horrid vision in mind of Bella turning up back at school and asking him how fluffy his tummy was. Bella had very little concept of tact.

"I want to do their tummies" said Bella.

"Well you can't" said Gorbrin "They don't like having their tummies done by anybody but their keepers who smell right. You behave or Mum Narcissa and Dad will leave you behind next time we go anyplace."

Bella sighed.

"I didn't say I was going to; only that I WANTED to" she said.

"Just so long as it's clear you can't" said Gorbrin "And you can't do Professor Khan's tummy either" he added hurriedly.

"Spoilsport."

Finn went to the circus transfigured into a human child and enjoyed it very much too. The physical prowess of these humans doing such feats without recourse to magic or knowledge that a hovering charm could save them was very impressive.

Lucius had slipped her a large gratuity too for her part in the plot and – which was more to her – had dropped a kiss on her forehead.

She accepted pay from Lucius because it was a proper thing for a free elf to do but she protested this.

"It's all part of protecting my family!"

Lucius grinned.

"And dropping pocket money is all part of me saying thank you to those of my family who helped protect me. You may want to save up for Christmas presents if you don't want anything for yourself my Finnling. Are you not prepared to take a percentage for spying to help my insider trading on the muggle stock exchange?"

"That's different."

"You mean that's business?"

She nodded.

Lucius cupped her chin with his hand.

"This is a love-gift of deep gratitude" he said. "It will please me if you accept it as such."

She gulped.

"All right" she said.

"There's my good obedient Finnling" he said, brushing her face as he removed his hand from her chin ,his eyes smiling to show he teased gently.

Finn had to lower her eyes to hide her feelings!

She was going to miss Gorbrin and Erica particularly when they went back to school; they weren't silly children at all, though Bella was a bit…..

No, Bella was a lot.

But it would be nice as well to spend a bit more time with the grown ups and learn more at Master Lucius' feet when he lectured her on this or that; and the ladies taught her things too from gardening to cooking to managing money, muggle and wizarding alike.

If Master Lucius never ever wanted her as a woman she was still happier than she had ever been, gently worshipping him from afar. This was her HOME. She had never really had one of those before.

The old Mistress had been indulgent; but she was still the mistress and Finn – Linny then – had been her slave. And with the Fey, though they had insisted on taking her, she was still there on sufferance, a slave of another kind and, as she began to suspect as she grew up, there only because house elves had a more substantial existence because they were tied to wizards with a human blood pact, the blood pact that Master Lucius had broken and yet still bred more in the flesh than in the unsubstance that was fey. House Elves could not enter feyspace. And because she was both she would be there as a womb for a generation of more substantial but still essentially fey beings. It was the main reason she had fled. And now nothing would please her more than to give Master Lucius babies. Ironic. But anyway, the fey crannog had been no true home; and she could not make a home with her mother. It had been too long; she scarcely remembered her mother, and she was not about to enter into another slavery of being obedient to a parent who had proceeded to a place where she might lurk amongst other slave elves. Finn knelt to Lucius and was obedient to him because it amused him and her both; and she quarrelled with him from time to time in private. Equally for fun. And he threatened to spank her into obedience and she had never quite dared see if he would and whether it might even be rather….intimate.

She could not go back.

She did however write to her mother and asked Gorbrin to take the letter and assure Lissy that her daughter was happy and well cared for and might visit when she was less busy.

Gorbrin would discharge such a commission scrupulously.

Lionel was at the station as usual to greet the returning pupils, hoards of Malfoys among them.

"I think Malfoys go under the same collective noun as nuns" he remarked to Mary-Anne, bubbling because her new step-mum thought she might be pregnant.

"What's that?" said Mary-Anne.

"A superfluity" said Lionel. Mary-Anne laughed and kissed him.

"What any more than one Malfoy is superfluous?" she said.

"It's surfeit the word you're looking for" said Mimi Snape stopping to say so "Dad always reckons that more than one Malfoy is a surfeit and that's half my siblings so I should know."

"I bow before your wisdom" said Lionel doing just that, prostrating himself on the flags.

"Dell you're a nutter" said Mimi "You should save that for your own ladies."

"Mmm, yes, could be fun having you at our feet" said Mary-Anne.

"Let's not go that route" said Lionel hastily. "What IS that child wearing? Who is it?"

Maud Edith Langstaff Hubble had the right luggage this time and was wearing a muggle-style hoodie pulled well forward.

There were feathers on her face.

"Crumbs!" said Lionel "What happened?"

"My rotten brother tried to turn me into an owl" said Maud, close to tears.

"How old is he?"

"Just turned fifteen" said Maud.

"Old enough to know better!" said Lionel "Especially if he can't hack it! Crumbs, that's horridly illegal, didn't the Min of Mag send an owl to tick him off?"

"No; 'cos magic's performed daily in a wizard's house it doesn't notice, dad said, but he didn't half punish James and serve him right! He might send him to Prince Peak next year because Professor Snape's well strict. AND they'll learn more there, 'cos I already know more theory 'bout lots of stuff than James does! That's why he tried to turn me into an owl 'cos he was sore that I knew what switching spells are and he doesn't. Anyway, so long as I don't have to be at school with James I don't care."

"What did your dad do to your brother?"

"Told him that as he was so jolly fond of owls he could sleep outside in a tree without a hammock" said Maud with satisfaction. "He fell out twice the first night though that might be because I put itching powder in his pyjamas."

"Serve him right" said Lionel "Doing human transfigurations is very tricky, you can leave organs out and things."

"Mum used to be good at it at school" said Maud "Told us stories of how she turned her worst enemy into a pig. But James isn't as good as her; and she never could do the counter transfigurations."

"Not very convenient" murmured Lionel, scandalised at what, it seemed, people did NOT learn at either Cackle's or Hellibore's. "I'm not good enough to do it; see if there's an odd Snape on the train; Mimi's there but she's too young, reckon Lydia can do it."

Maud brightened.

"Oh good" she said "Mum reckoned they could fix it at Hogwarts, she's almost certain there's a potion that will."

"There is. Mandragora" said Lionel "Tricky little potion but not if you concentrate. Takes a bit of time but essentially it's just the slow stewing and not letting it catch."

"Oh good" said Maud "I expect HB can do it."

"Who?"

"HB. The Hardbroom; what mum calls her. She had her too for potions and was terrified of her; she was also first year form mistress. Why don't we have form mistresses?"

"We have house masters and mistresses instead; and there aren't any prefects at Cackle's – well there weren't – so I guess that means we have the older ones to look after the youngsters and in a small number like in a house you only need one master or mistress to be an effective parent figure" said Lionel. "There's only a maximum of seventy people in any one house; so about as many as Lucius Malfoy's children" he quipped. Maud's eyes looked even rounder in her partly transfigured state.

"REALLY?"

"No, I exaggerate; he has about two dozen kids" said Lionel. "Some are stepchildren, some are adopted. Lucius is richer than God so he can afford them. He owns half the wizarding property in England and a goodly amount of muggle stuff too. And if he's happy and they're happy, who cares!"

"I guess so!" said Maud "Bella said there were heaps of kids at home who'd be coming to school but I kinda took that as Bella exaggerating half a dozen or so."

"And with Bella not an unreasonable assumption!" said Lionel.

Maud skipped in happily to find Lydia and friends and discovered that Leo Black-Weasley had been collecting miniature flying brooms over the holidays and was busy showing them off to the other Mad Marauders.

They had just escaped his control and marauders were busy chasing them all around the train to the irritation of their elders.

Lydia sighed and instead of careering about like the boys and Mei motioned to Polly to stay and cast _accio_ on them.

Her friends returned looking sheepish as she handed them over.

Maud then approached and explained her predicament.

"Crumbs your brother's not only a pratt, he's an incompetent pratt" said Lydia, running a wand over Maud. "everything's there anyway even if it is in a few strange places and….gosh how horrid having a cloaca!"

"EXACTLY" said Maud.

Lydia frowned slightly; and shook her wand.

"OOOH!" said Maud in pleasure "How NICE!"

The feathers receded and Maud was herself again.

"If anything feels odd, see Professor McGonagall" said Lydia "I'm fairly certain I put it right but your brother is such a cretin I might have missed something that would not normally be wrong."

"I feel great!" said Maud.

Lionel did not feel great.

He was being introduced to a new Weevil

"This is Amos Leroy" said the child's keeper in a tone of awe.

"Ah, Mr Leroy, first year?" said Lionel.

"Yes I am" said the boy.

"Well, I'm sure the other weevils will help you catch up."

"Other WHAT? And by the way, I shan't have to catch up; my skills are impeccable. I may be placed above my chronological age"

"All first years are referred to as weevils; second are warts" said Lionel.

"If you call me any such I shall report you."

"Don't be such a silly little boy" said Lionel "For one thing it's custom not insult; for another I'm Head Boy. Who in the name of thunder would you report me to?"

"To the head master of course"

"Who'd put you in detention for acting the idiot" said Lionel "these airs and graces do NOT become an eleven year old. Now hop on the train and try not to antagonise your fellow weevils by being an ass."

"How DARE you talk to him like that? He's AMOS LEROY!" said the minder.

"He's one more first year same as all the rest whether Tom Smith or Bella Black or Jocelyn Malfoy" said Lionel.

Young Leroy looked interested.

"Oh, not devoid of class then" he said.

"Laddie, half of us are related to Lucius Malfoy one way or another; it's no big deal" said Lionel.

"Why didn't you SAY you were related to a good family?" said Leroy.

"Because it's not important you silly kid" said Lionel. "And your aunt or whatever seems to expect me to have heard of you and give you deference; well I haven't heard of you and if you were a younger brother of Prince Victor of Belsornia you'd still be treated the same. Now get on the train."

"You haven't HEARD of me? Don't you have any culture?" said Leroy, opening his eyes wide.

"When I hear the word culture I reach for my wand" said Lionel "Culture in that tone of voice generally means Celestina Warbeck strangling kippers on the wireless or some highbrow jerk talking about iambic pentameters. When I leave school I'm going to kill dark wizards for a living; I have no time for culture."

This was not entirely true; but the child needed sitting on.

"So you haven't heard of the operas that have been specially written for my Voice?" Leroy was injured.

"No" said Lionel "And you won't be singing opera in school anyway. If you try I should think most of the other kids will jinx you into a ball; nobody likes a caterwauling row when they're trying to work. Apply your training to chanting and you may turn out to be a fairly useful wizard. After all, any muggle can sing opera, why waste what you are?"

Leroy burst into tears of rage and his minder came to comfort him, scowling at Lionel.

"NOW see what you've done!" she said.

Lionel shrugged.

"Better he hears it told straight from me in the spirit of trying to help than finds he's utterly despised for swanking about nothing" he said.

"You'll see! They'll all have heard of him!" she declared.

Somehow Lionel doubted that.

A child opera star was likely to appeal to middle aged childless women or those with grown up children and no grandchildren yet to remind them of the downside of children he though cynically. Not to other kids!


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Amos Leroy found himself under the scrutiny of several people who were – in the main – quite as beautiful as himself, since the Mad Marauders were too recently released from their parents to be too much else, despite the chase after broomsticks. Lydia was a neat little person at the best of times – even in the throes of heated mischief – and was an exquisite piece of ivory perfection with pale ringlets and magnolia skin and big blue eyes. Mei had got to an age where she occasionally made concessions to personal appearance and had not yet forgotten to try to look like a dignified fourth year; Chad rarely had a hair out of place even when plastered with mud and Mad was still looking like Amadeo not having yet got around to hacking off the golden ringlets his mother loved nor losing the 'artistic' tie over his uniform that Lionel permitted because he knew it would disappear by the time they got to Hogwarts. Polly was always fresh looking; and Leo scarcely counted as he looked like a boy, walked like a boy and smelled like a boy as Lydia cheerfully said.

"Hello" said Mei "Is it rude to ask how come you're late starting?"

Amos Leroy tossed his golden curls theatrically.

"I've been on Tour!" he said with a heavy sigh.

"Touring what? Educational trips?" asked Lydia. He gave her an impatient look.

"ON Tour! I've been singing all over America!"

"Oh do you sing then?" said Mei "That's handy, we've got a fairly musical bunch right now – especially Jade, Godders and Seagh though Lydia here does some pretty cool things with a flute. We get up concerts from time to time and Chad and Mad here write songs – his real name's Amadeo so you can see why we don't use it" she added seeing the frown of incomprehension over a boy being addresses as 'Mad'

"Why not? Amadeo is a most attractive name" said Leroy.

"For a puppy" snorted Mad "I hate it. It's sissy; and believe me I'm losing the curls as soon as we're well under way so my mum won't find out and be hurt; do it every term, cut them on the way, Lydia grows them back the day before end of term. Sorted. She'd do the same for you I reckon if you wanted to lose the putti look and look a bit more normal."

Leroy drew back in horror and put a protective hand to his curly golden head.

"Oh what a horrid idea!" he said "My curls are my TRADEMARK!"

"Oh you mean you can't really sing then?" said Mei "I thought your singing was what you were about."

"It is! But I have my image!"

"Crumbs" said Leo.

Leroy forced a smile.

"What sort of songs do you write?" he asked Mad and Chad.

"Satirical ones mostly" said Chad "Hey kids, let's do the cauldron monster song!"

"He won't understand it if he doesn't know Professor Snape" said Polly "There's no point sending someone up if the audience doesn't know the er, sendee."

"Your elf is rather insolent" said Leroy.

Several flat unfriendly stares turned on him.

"B-bit unobservant, aren't you old boy?" said Leo "She's in uniform l-like any other s-schoolkid. And d-don't you start any cheek to her b-because she's a third year and y-you're just a weevil. W-we all unbend to talk to you t-to help you feel at home b-but any more of that and we'll abandon you to the r-ridicule of your own class."

"Why should there be ridicule?"

"Because you look odd" said Mei "And we'll protect you if you earn your living from looking like a little boy several years younger than you are because that's kind of understood, if you need to make your own way in the world. Howsabout you join in with us singing 'There's a zombie in my attic'?"

"Ugg! I would never sing anything low and vulgar like that!"

"Well you're the loser then 'cos it's fun to sing; and normal schoolkids like low and vulgar anyway" said Mei. "What do you like to sing then?"

Privately she thought him a waste of space but it behoved one to try.

Amos Leroy lifted his boy's treble into a very highbrow sounding song which soared into a register beyond which words could be distinguished.

"Help, m-mummy, they've let D-DEMENTORS onto the train!" cried Leo.

"You didn't ought to soar like that without ten minutes of warm up" said Lydia critically, who knew something about it from her own chanting lessons.

Amos flushed and stopped, offended by Leo and shamed by Lydia.

He was showing off and he knew that his voice trainer had forbidden him to sing without warm ups.

"Why?" said Mei

"Because you can strain your voice and ruin it for good" said Lydia "Mum took a full operatic singing course to improve her chanting. She passed it on to us. I'll explain when we get to the point in the book where singing becomes more use than chanting. You'll also need to learn how to breathe properly; it hurts at first but it gives you better range and staying power as well as a richer timbre"

"Great" said Mei. "But y'see, laddie – never got your name – Lydia can do all that fancy stuff but she also sings popular songs as part of being a schoolgirl. Do you not get it?"

"My name is Amos Leroy; and I'm not an ORDINARY schoolboy" said Amos "I'm a child star."

"Yeah, well, milk it in the holidays until your voice breaks but don't try that crap on your peer group; they'll laugh themselves silly" said Mad "We understand a bit; we even let you off light over being rude to Polly. Polly's a gentler person too than Mimi – she's in your year – and if you try to push her around she'll jinx you into a ball."

"She's my adoptive sister" said Lydia "And we learned a curse or two in the Voldemort years. That's why I'm one of the ones with a zig-zag scar. I don't make an issue of it; but our fame sort of rather outweighs a kid who can sing a bit. And your voice is good but you should use it when you're away from home by singing non challenging pieces to exercise it but not too much. And if you're not sure how much to do see either my sister Jade in the fifth or Amiya Green who's head of Ravenclaw house. But I think you're going to need a lesson or two in humility before you become a decent person; and you'll get several from your peer group, especially if you expect them to recognise that name you emphasise so firmly."

"Why, don't you think younger children will have heard of me? In America they said I was a shining example of childhood to hold up to the children of the wizarding community!"

"Yeah, but Americans are nutters" said Mad "Mum took me there promoting dad's books and they drooled over me and kissed me and called me a little darling and a dear shining example etc. It was gross, I nearly barfed on them!"

"Besides, why should they have heard of you?" said Lydia "I haven't and I don't think the rest of us have – no we have a carriage full of shaken heads. If I was you, I'd lose the curls and try to live down being an idol of nutty Yankee old witches and you can join us for voice exercises after the MSHG run if you like. You might like to run in the mornings too; increases lung capacity you know and general fitness."

Amos was staring at her in horror.

She knew something about singing but she had never heard of him! He had been building rosy visions of this exquisitely beautiful little girl being a partner and a foil to him, singing together! But she didn't like his lovely curls and she agreed with the other rough nasty children that Americans were nutty – and she suggested so rough an activity as RUNNING!

"Or not" murmured Lydia who knew when she was beat.

Leroy was led firmly to Bella Black and her wider group of cronies, which included all of her age of Slytherin House bar Mafalda Prewett and a significant portion of Gryffindor, one Hufflepuff and two Ravenclaws, twenty one children in all, all packed somehow into one compartment – some of the boys were on the luggage racks – eating sweets and telling ghost stories.

"This lot are moderately civilised" said Mei "Kids this is Amos Leroy and he can't help being a child star and he needs the curls to earn his own living from sick old mommas in America to drool on him so try not to rag him too much about it unless he doesn't behave himself."

"Hi Amos" said Bella "Me an' Griselen an' Genavka an' Ian get people patting us on the head to try to curry favour with Lucius so we know how awful it is. We won't mention it – or the Christopher Robin look – if you don't."

"But I LIKE being famous" said Amos.

"Crumbs!" said Bella "Well, there's a satisfaction in waving being part of the Noble Black Family and a Malfoy connection in the face of people who need bullying I grant you that; and I guess you can't have one without the other."

"Dad likes using who he is" said Griselen. "It's kinda nice watching people change from being sneering and pompous to grovelling when they hear the name 'Malfoy'. I've never heard of you Amos; sorry."

"None of you have any culture!" said Amos, stamping his foot "And nobody told me I'd have to associate with goblins and house elves neither, it's not PROPER for someone of my artistic temperament to have to be upset by looking at horrid ugly creatures treated as though they're real people!"

There was a long shocked silence; then a sudden babble.

Amos Leroy spent the rest of the journey in a boneless state, pale green and with pustules all over his body spelling words like 'creep' and 'git' and 'racist' and 'try that for artistic temperament'.

Mei rescued him at the station.

"Don't say I didn't warn you" she said.

"I'll report them all for bullying!" sobbed Amos.

"What a sissy sneak!" said Mei scornfully "Poor ickle mummy's boy, why don't you go back to America? We know what to do to sneaks at Hogwarts, I can tell you! Especially as by the comments of the pustules you made racist remarks! Believe me, if they meant to BULLY you, you'd be bleeding in various places and need medical attention. A few corridor curses isn't bullying! Teach you to learn the counter jinxes quickly, won't it?"

Leroy snuffled unhappily, then wondered if that wasn't going to spoil his looks and stopped.

The new boy was duly Sorted into Ravenclaw.

There was a collective groan from the Ravenclaw contingent of the Marauders, Ming Chang, Pearl Brocklehurst and the two first years who had met him, Venilia Cornfoot and Avice Crawford.

"Oh no, can't the Slythers be made to have him?" said Ming Chang in lively dismay, having heard about the boy from Mei "JUST when we were getting our house half decent too we have another awful weevil!"

Dumbledore frowned at him.

"I'm sure that Ravenclaw house will rise to helping Amos to settle in" he said firmly.

Ming had the grace to flush.

"Sorry sir" he said.

Jack Murray was not happy having someone else in his class, house and dormitory who considered himself worthy of adulation either; as Jack's claim to fame was being the relative of someone famous having someone famous in his own right was a threat.

Jack did at least manage to comfort himself that he too was as good at Quidditch as his famous great aunt and that would bring lustre on the house and earn him approbation that way, even if the games captain was too stupid to relax the rule to let him play this year!

Some singer did not really compete there!

The only person who had heard of Amos was Argus Clearwater who was a bit of an information squirrel. Himself hopeless at Quidditch, Argus also despised it – and the factions in his year over it – and gravitated towards Amos, who was pleased to find someone who at least knew something about him.

Argus disliked opera almost as much as he disliked quidditch; but it was an almost, and at least being friendly with Amos did not mean he had to sit through hours of tedious opera whereas all the others were tedious about quidditch all day long. It did not occur to Argus that Venilia, who also was bad at and was not interested in, Quidditch managed to be friendly with Avice Crawford who was good at the game; the concept of compromise was beyond him.

Argus also disliked the concept of house elves in school, agreeing on that with Amos; though he had never stopped to consider the question of goblins in school which was far more a fait accompli and becoming well established. If he thought about it at all, he would have said that he preferred goblins in school to mudbloods; but he was quickly able to see that their ugliness might upset a highly strung and artistic person.

It was not a pretty cronyship; but it was not one likely to actively cause trouble and the more balanced elements of the house heaved a collective sigh of relief that at least they could irritate each other and not irritate anyone else too much.

Until, that is, Amos did his voice exercises in the morning.

Ming Chang shot into the first's bedroom in lively horror.

"Who's killing whom?" he demanded.

"Nobody's killing anyone" said Amos coldly.

"Have you got a gut ache or something then?" said Ming "Those were some pretty bloodcurdling yells you were giving."

"THAT" said Amos "Is my voice exercises."

"Blimey!" said Ming "If it needs that much exercise maybe you should take it on a five-mile hike first so it's far enough away that the rest of us can't hear."

"Philistine" said Amos coldly.

It was perhaps unfortunate that some of the older girls of Ravenclaw house had heard of the boy prodigy and made a bit of a pet off him; but this time Amiya Green was on the ball as head of house.

"Don't let me see anyone treat that child any differently to any of the others in the matter of discipline" she said to the house prefects "He may have a tremendous talent but nobody's doing him any favours trying to turn him into a spoiled little monster. And he should NOT be giving demonstrations; if he's at school he's at school to learn lessons not to sing, and I shouldn't be surprised if he's supposed to be resting his voice if he overdid things on the America tour. That I'm going to find out and supervise his permitted exercises too. Let the kid have a life as a normal little boy! He's not a ruddy lap dog you know to be passed around, or a doll. And I saw him actually sitting on your LAP Mabs, and that's mightily unhealthy for a boy of eleven to do. If you want to cuddle babies go and borrow one from the orphanage; they're always glad of extra cuddles. Not weevils. I mean, crumbs, can you see a normal weevil permitting that? Even one of the girls unless she's hurt or homesick?"

Amabel Treadle, the upper sixth girl in question went red.

"He seems so much younger" she murmured.

"Well it's cruel to him to keep him younger than his years; he'll get ragged silly by his peer group, poor little devil" said Amiya. "If you ask me his parents were daft not to cut all that blonde fuzz off him."

"But it's so CUTE!" said Mabs.

Amiya regarded her thoughtfully.

"And what normal eleven year old boy likes being CUTE except when they can use it to wriggle out of mischief?" she said. "Yes, I've watched Mad Lockhart loose his devastating charm and big blue eyes on Madam Sprout when he's been caught swiping stinksap for his own nefarious purposes because she's the only teacher it works on; but then think of Mad Lockhart most of the time and we're rather cramped in my office so try not to shudder too violently when you do so."

"What do we do about it?" said Romillie Travis, a lower sixth prefect.

"We treat him like all the rest with a little leeway for being new" said Amiya "And jump on him for singing anything that is out of the ordinary without permission."

Amiya's questioning of Amos revealed that his fond mama had thought that he had tired himself on the America tour and that a year or two at school might help, singing only in the holidays. It had not been she who saw him off being too prostrated with grief at losing her darling treasure for several months; it was the boy's aunt who did very well out of being his agent and Amiya suspected that her adoration would have been a little less had he not paid the bills so well. It had been the aunt's advice to him not to let his adoring public forget who he was just because he was at school that was, Amiya suspected, at least partly responsible for his stuck up behaviour; if he was made miserable at school or made enough of a nuisance of himself for Dumbledore to ask to have him withdrawn the money from tours could start rolling in again. Amiya decided she did not like the unfortunate child's aunt and gave him pithy and sensible advice much along the lines that Mei had already done, but a little more tactfully.

Amiya's name had been mentioned by Lydia as being knowledgeable about music so Amos took it; and also leaped at her offer to work with him on his voice loosening exercises. It was flattering for a really big girl to give him time however much he might tell himself it was only what he was due!

Amos meanwhile found out what sorts of songs the Mad Marauders liked to sing when he heard Chad and Mad's latest offering to a Gilbert and Sullivan tune, the closest they ever got to opera.

"I am the very model of a modern Hogwarts potioneer

I'm ready with a love potion and also can brew butterbeer

I can make a laughing draft in a time that's really very fast

It even works on Sevvy Snape the famous sneering Agelast"

- Which word Chad had found in a dictionary looking up something else, discovered it meant someone who never laughed and filed away for future reference -

"I have with in my dungeon ingredients both good and vile

I can decant them readily in bottle, flask or even phial

In short in matters absolute you're sure to find it does appear

I am the very model of a modern Hogwarts potioneer!"

It seemed very silly to Amos; but the reception they got was warm and genuine.

It was all very strange.

"Daddy does laugh you know" said Lydia. "He just has his reputation to maintain."

"Well we help him to maintain it, don't we?" Said Chad, not unreasonably. "Anyway, agelast was far too good a word to waste."

"I guess daddy would agree with that" said Lydia "Anyway he likes Gilbert and Sullivan; in a good mood he can be moved to sing King Gama's song – you know, the one about having a celebrated sneer."

"Yes I know" said Mad "I'd give a lot to hear Severus singing that. He's got a really nice light baritone that blends so well with your mum's mezzo, I'm going to miss them doing the odd number at impromtu concerts. She's got a better voice than Celestina Warbeck."

"Gorbrin's TOAD has a better voice then Celestina Warbeck" said Lydia contemptuously "She doesn't sing from her chest only her throat and she strains on the high notes; more vibrato than a broom with a hurling curse on it."

They laughed and Chad did a wickedly good falsetto rendition of 'cauldron full of hot strong love'

"He has a Venomous Tentacular in his trousers to get him up to those notes" Mad explained.

"Oh I thought y-you'd jinxed him" said Leo.

"Philistines!" said Chad in a perfect copy of Amos' previous tone, having heard about it from Ming; and they all fell about laughing.

Amos was hurt.

They actually seemed really quite knowledgeable about music but they did not take it seriously!

He was not of course aware of how seriously they took its magical aspects in chanting.

Most people ignored the child prodigy it has to be said.

As one of the people who ignored him was Lydia, whom Amos really rather wanted to impress, he was less than happy; but as the prefects of his own house seemed bent on not letting him do anything with his voice that was not sanctioned he could hardly serenade her to attract her regard.

This was just as well for Amos Leroy's long term ego since had he done such a thing Lydia would probably have giggled at him and told him not to be an idiot.

One reason he was ignored was that most people were interested in the Quidditch.

Ravenclaw had played Hufflepuff way back in the winter term and won; so there were five more matches to fit in before the OWLs were underway.

Gorbrin didn't mind; he was happy to play several matches in a hurry. And the Slytherin team was good, and worked well as a team. Philip Burke fitted in well with him and Ed Dinalt; and Meliandra worked well with Kate Rosier.

Jade was happy too; she would happily fit in to play whenever needed, as she felt her revision was more than up to scratch. Kate Rosier was taking OWLs too, and Ed was taking his NEWTs but they were the only ones affected by exams and both Ed and Jade were too confident about lessons to be bothered; and Kate appreciated being helped out by the Prowling Marauders in common with anyone else who wanted to join a revision club. This was Slytherin and Gryffindor in a body, significant numbers of Hufflepuff and one Ravenclaw. Francesca Longbottom, cousin of Neville and a surprise to her family in being a Ravenclaw, was sick of the inter-house squabbles mostly caused these days by her own house; she was one of the prefects who enthusiastically squashed incipient prigs and brats like Me-first Murray and Amos Leroy. She was also playing for her house as head of games, and as the Marauders offered to hear everyone's revision there was no unfairness in that. Francesca was actually quite friendly with her Slytherin counterpart Kate; they had too an amicable rivalry for the attentions of Ed Dinalt who it has to be said had not actually noticed either of them as women though he was complimentary enough on their Quidditch playing. Especially Kate who had moments of sheer brilliance in an otherwise still solid performance; Fran was what is generally known as a 'good all rounder' – at lessons as at games – without a streak of brilliance over anything. Jade referred to her as 'a bit Hermione Grangerish' and anyone who had known Hermione knew exactly what she meant.

Slytherin played Ravenclaw first; it could be a grudge match as Slytherin-Gryffindor matches had been in the past, but with people like Francesca and Mei Chang on the team it was a sight more friendly than some matches had been recently! Francesca had rearranged things so that Mad and Chad were two of the chasers, a sight better for the team and it was a tough match, keeping fairly close. Slytherin's defence was the better however; and Slytherin started to pull gradually ahead.

They were fourteen goals up; and Gorbrin could see the snitch out of the corner of his eye with Jade and Mei both in hot pursuit.

If Jade got it there was no harm done; if Mei got it they had lost.

And he had the quaffle and there was Amber Connell and Tony Queach as beaters to get past, and then Francesca as keeper.

He back-passed to Ed who noted the younger boy's path with an arithmancer's eye and slung the quaffle hard to be where Gorbrin would be by the time it got there; and he was dodging at Francesca, diving to make her use the starfish and stick tactic, then jinking up sharply to go over her before she had a chance to move; and the quaffle was through the ring!

And then the howl went up!

Mei Chang had the snitch, unaware that a goal had been scored, ending the game on a draw!

The bludger took Gorbrin in the back and threw him from his broom.

Tony Queach was busy swearing, as Gorbrin came round, that he had hit it before the match was declared over, that he was sorry and that he never meant to hurt the kid.

"I believe you Queach, it's okay" said Gorbrin weakly. Queach got over excited; he might have hit it after the whistle for a technical foul, but if he did it was only because he never heard the whistle in the emotion of the minute. Gorbrin held no grudge, though he knew he might resent the older boy's carelessness if he was out of the next match!

Jade came over to her team-mate.

"Lie still a minute Gorbers old boy" she said.

"I told you not to call me that" said Gorbrin irritably and passed out.

When he came to, Jade, Ed, Mei, Chad and Mad were chanting over him.

"I don't need a burial service yet" he muttered.

They ignored him, moving into a complex weaving of the chant, like a half-sung, half spoken round; and the pain in his back became briefly more intense and then subsided into a dull ache and vanished.

"You'll do now our kid" said Jade in a normal voice.

"Amazing!" Madam Pomfrey was waving a wand at him "The spine knit, the cord rejoined and no apparent long term effects…."

"I am my father's daughter Madam Pomfrey" said Jade quietly.

Gorbrin sat up.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Queach's Bludger caught you in the small of the back breaking your spine and the fall to the ground severed the spinal cord" said Jade crisply "Fortunately the Mad Marauders have been studying chanting on their own time so we fixed it fairly easily….wiggle your toes and things laddie, just to check I haven't cross-wired anything and you won't try to stand on the wrong foot or pee out of your big toe or anything."

Gorbrin grinned but checked anyway.

"Seems A-1" he said laconically "Thank you people; I owe you."

"Nah, no debt owing" said Mei "Players for each other y'know?"

Gorbrin nodded and got up. Queach was still hovering and Gorbrin stuck out a hand.

Queach wrung it enthusiastically.

He knew he might have missed the whistle.

Hurting any kid was something he would want to avoid; and hurting Lucius Malfoy's son was not the wisest thing even if Gorbrin wasn't actually a rather decent kid, for a Slytherin.

Tony was no racist; Mei always declared he disliked everyone who wasn't dead and wrote symphonies equally, which was an exaggeration; Tony had rather a sarcastic tongue and Mei had been its target more than once.

"You're good, Snape, and lucky to have tuition from your dad" said Tony. "I wanted to learn chanting."

Jade shrugged.

"You've the musical base, Queach; I can give you a list of the books dad taught himself out of in the library if you like. Then it's up to you. It's how Mei, Mad and Chad here learned."

Tony Queach looked on his juniors with renewed interest.

"Respect to you kids" he said. "If you'll get me started I'll be glad to listen."

"Well, you're a bigger man that I thought you Queach" said Mei "We'll be glad to."

Tony shrugged.

"I thought I'd killed him" he said simply "Or crippled him for life at best. Times like that you forget pride, y'know?"

"Yeah" said Mei.

Her housemates weren't really so bad, most of them; some of the older ones could be a little pompous; and most of this year's weevils needed to be thoroughly sat on. But apart from the few cankers like Goodchild and Crouch-Villeneuve they were all right.

It gave one a warm glow to be able to be proud of one's house not faintly ashamed of it.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Ravenclaw sportingly swapped fixtures with Slytherin to give Gorbrin a day recovering and played Gryffindor next day instead of Slytherin playing Hufflepuff.

Ravenclaw won decisively against Gryffindor whose team was not of the most experienced, having Callum Prince in the lower sixth and a middle school largely devoid of significant talent, though the four Weasleys, Colin,upper sixth, Alice in the fifth, Roger in the fourth and Theo in the third, whilst not as good as their cousins, Ron's siblings, at least made up for some of the deficiencies of the team by being good at teamwork. Lydia moved from seeker to chaser to allow the brilliant weevil Sekunder Singh to play seeker, showing the difference in philosophy between Gryffindor's style of apportioning roles and those of any Ravenclaw head of games save someone as Gryff-ish as Fran Longbottom, as Jade put it. Sekunder's friend Oliver was reserve and was likely to take over as keeper from Colin from the next year, which pleased him well enough; Oliver Harris was an ambitious boy but realistic enough to realise that you had to be very special to be in the team in the first year; or else your team was pretty desperate! The Gryffs were a bit desperate; and Callum had needed to bully Colin into playing all his siblings in case anyone thought it was nepotism.

"Nah, they know we're almost desperate enough to play a Crouch-Jones or your cousin Persis" said Callum.

Colin had to laugh. His best friend was Jasper Crouch-Jones but the family seemed to have as little affinity for broomsticks as Weasleys did with cauldrons. And as for Persis Beck, her lethality on broomback was legendary. She had been known, at practice, to perform every broom foul in the book in the space of five minutes and all of them unintentional. Persis was one of those students who did cross-country flying with Sirius Black instead of quidditch in the interests of the safety of everyone on the quidditch pitch.

Not that cross-country flying ruled out accidents.

Persis had not had any yet this year but Richmaya Crouch-Jones had needed to be rescued twice from a tree, once from a bothy chimney and most memorably once from the antlers of a very surprised and upset stag.

Sirius had played a joke on her and floured his hair to declare that she had turned him white overnight. Richmaya was terribly sorry! Richmaya was always terribly sorry; but accidents just ran up and BIT her as she declared.

The other Gryffindors hoped she would grow out of it.

Slytherin played their delayed match against Hufflepuff.

Hufflepuff had several solid players but no real high flyers in any sense of the word. Miriam Moonshine, once of Cackle's academy had proved to have some fair talent – as indeed had Emerald Cherrytree when introduced to the game but she had been left champing, with the rest of the talented first year Ravenclaws, on the bit. Miriam was played at Beater in Hufflepuff, a position that suited her well, for she had an excellent sense of timing and a precision in the placement of the bludger that had Lionel Dell murmuring that she'd be a most excellent supporting bat if he could get her interested in cricket. Tamsin Clintock played seeker and was captain and was a demon flyer, challenging Jade at every turn; but with two good players and what Ed described as 'another five types sitting on brooms' the outcome was never in any doubt.

Slytherin walked away with the match.

Lionel did however make a point of praising Miriam and suggested she watch the cricket match against St Jodoc's and consider joining in next year.

As Tamsin also played cricket, Miriam was more open to the suggestion that she might otherwise have been!

Slytherin had to win against Gryffindor or see Ravenclaw take the shield.

The Weasleys put up a gallant defence; but Kate's team were all good friends and she and Meliandra were superb defenders, and Lionel's long arms and legs seemed to be everywhere.

Gorbrin thought of the muggle circus acrobats and wondered if learning tricks like that might be in order to use as a keeper. He had played keeper in practice and had quite enjoyed it; and he would not object if Kate put him there after Lionel left; depending on what new talent there was. Of course Ed left this year, and that would leave him, Gorbrin, the most experienced Chaser; and chasers had to have a strong leader or be a strong team used to working together.

And Jade would go too, to Prince Peak! He suddenly realised.

They would need two new players.

His sister Zajala promised to be good; and Phil Burke's brother was coming in too, perhaps he was good like Phil. Otherwise it would have to be Heather Burns who was damn good at cricket and could fly well enough.

The last match was Gryffindor against Hufflepuff and a bit of the case of may the least worse survive as Jade said a little unkindly.

It was no big surprise however that Gryffindor won. The boy Sekunder was very good and grabbed the snitch while Hufflepuff had yet to score.

So far Ravenclaw and Slytherin tied on points having drawn.

"Do we share the shield or have a playoff?" asked Kate of Francesca

."Secret ballot of all out players on that I think" said Francesca who was happy to share the shield herself but would not make the decision for her team.

Gorbrin voted to replay.

He had no exams and besides it was the last probable chance for a while to keep the shield out of Ravenclaw hands.

The ballot returned a 'play a decider' result of ten to four; as Gorbrin was pretty certain that all his own team had voted to play that meant the Ravenclaws had been split and four had wanted to share. Which might be nice natures but was more likely to be exams or at least heavy homework schedules.

They waited a day; it would still give half a week before the exams started.

It was a nice warm day but with enough haze to make playing comfortable. Gorbrin was glad; he did not like it hot.

"Did you want to play Lionel to stack up scores as chaser and put me in as keeper?" he asked Kate.

"What, our hero of the match who saved the last game against Ravenclaw?" scoffed Kate "You're way too fast to use as keeper. Out main trouble is that we have five people who could fly either chaser or seeker; Lionel's experience and long legs condemn him to Keep, which is your one disadvantage in the position I have to say, though you've the flexibility. Unless you've taken against their bludgers?"

"Oh no Kate!" said Gorbrin earnestly then realised she was teasing him.

"You'll be seeker next year laddie" said Kate "No Jade. I'd swap you in for this match but Jade knows Mei Chang inside out. You're the only one left has the speed and the cool head. And that'll be your ace in the hole against that young demon of the Gryffs and Me-first of the Ravers. Your cool. You can practise in the hols. Got any sibs coming in?"

"Yes, a sister, Zajala; she is good, not like the twins who like it fine well but aren't nuts on it like me" said Gorbrin. "Zajala takes quidditch seriously."

"Excellent" said Kate. "Then I either hope for another brilliant weevil or play Heather Burns"

"Just what I wondered" said Gorbrin.

"Hmm, you've a good eye" said Kate. "You'll be old man on the team before long and captain too; and an eye like that will stand you in good stead. Right; let's get ready."

Once again it was the defensive team that helped; Kate and Meliandra solid with their bludgeons, attacking Mad and Chad particularly with the bludger to put them off. Tony Queach was a bit nervous with the bludger because of the accident of the last game, more so perhaps because of Gorbrin's slight goblin frame. It helped with scoring, Gorbrin had to admit.

They were up on Ravenclaw; and it was looking very similar to the last game, with the possibility of the whole game turning on who caught the snitch.

It was also Jade Snape's last ever game as a Slytherin, her last game at Hogwarts.

There was no way she was going to let Mei Chang find the snitch. Jade had eyes everywhere; and then she dived for the ground.

Mei was after her; she had no choice even though she could not yet see the snitch.

It was the Wronski feint; and with a yelp, Mei pulled up just too late, caught the end of her broom on the ground and flew off it. And Jade was away after the snitch, as soon as she had blood-checked that Mei was uninjured.

Mei sat on the ground swearing to have been caught so royally.

And Jade had the snitch!

Game over; and the shield to Slytherin House.

There were handshakes all round and long cold pumpkin juices for the players.

"Well we've had it for a goodly few years" said Ed with satisfaction "Nice way to end my school career; several young Princes and Snapes coming up to take it back in the future and Malfoys too I guess, right Gorbrin?"

"All things being equal" said Gorbrin. "At least one Malfoy a year for the next seven years and sundry ones after that, generally in batches."

"How like Lucius to make sure we get half a team at once" grinned Ed. "Well played all; been a pleasure to be on the team if I may say so, and thanks to Kate for shouldering the responsibility of being Captain. Three cheers for Kate!"

They cheered her.

"Idiots" she said "The captain is only as good as the team. You're a great lot. You've raised the bar on your own performances; I really thought we'd miss Hawke and Rom; and we do because we have to play harder. But the point is that you all HAVE played harder. It's a privilege. And just because we half expect the Ravers to walk it next year that's no excuse for slacking!"

"No SIR!" said Gorbrin, earning himself a gentle slap around the head by Kate.

And then the exams were on them, OWLs first. Most of Jade's set, Marauders or just friends, were taking nine: Lynx was taking ten and Jade was taking eleven which she vowed and declared was purely down to indecisiveness over what electives to take; and Lynx said waspishly that the only reason Jade wasn't taking thirteen or fourteen was because even Jade had to eat and sleep sometimes. Jade grinned and said that alas that was true.

Potions was, as was customary, the first exam.

Many had mugged up on the Draught of Peace because it had been set four years running and was a popular OWL level potion. Jade had a strong suspicion that it was high time for a change.

In this she was entirely correct.

They were set to brew the Confusing and Befuddlement Draught from memory.

There was a collective groan from much of the class, most notably some of the more cocky Ravenclaws who had declared that the Draught of Peace was the only OWL level potion that matched the time.

Jade glanced again at the exam paper and saw the second question

"Now brew and antidote of your own choosing with notes on chosen ingredients and the reasons you chose them.".

That should be fun!

Jem and Erwin should have no trouble with this; they were dad's wards after all, thought Jade. Senagra was good enough to manage and so was Fabian, Annis and Beth too. Lynx might struggle!

By the looks on their faces the majority of the Huffers had given up before they even started and so had all the other Gryffs. Kate Rosier was grimly determined – good for Kate – and Gabriel – and Romneya was going to have a shot. Francesca Longbottom had murmured against the other Ravers who had been saying that there was only one choice, she had the aplomb to just get on with it, and Crouch-Jones looked as though he was going to blow a gasket after learning the Draught of Peace by rote for hour on end.

Silly clunch, served him right.

All this time Jade was bruising her sneezewort, scurvy-grass and lovage and cutting very fine fwooper down, all of which ingredients were out on the main table in trays to collect at will together with ingredients suitable for the antidote and a few innocuous ingredients too for the purpose of confusing and befuddling the students. Jade also went to the cupboard for a pinch of mustard powder to enhance what their text book described as the 'braine inflaming' effects of her three herbs and made a note of it on her required sheet of methodology. In an exam one might get credit for attempting something even if the potion suffered a mishap. And the better and fuller notes – without degenerating into waffle – the more chance of bonus marks.

It was a quick, easy brew, and Jade left it to cool for decanting while she collected the ingredients to devise a counter potion.

It was covered by Golapott's first law, that the antidote or couteractive to any poison or potion must equal or exceed in effect the power of the ingredients of the original.

Jade wrote out Golapott's first law, credited it and underlined it.

Then she decanted her confusing and befuddlement draught and set to work, listing her ingredients. She chose armadillo bile, cut ginger root and ground scarab beetle from the wit-sharpening potion and added jobberknoll feathers as were used in both the memory potion and many truth serums for the recollection of true thoughts. There was besides, as she added, a symmetry in using the feathers as a counter to the fwooper down. She chopped the ginger coarsely then used the back of her knife to crush it slightly as she had seen her father do; and scrawled down a rapid arithmantic formula to work out the best way to grind the dried scarabs, settling for three clockwise and four counterclockwise motions of the pestle.

There was still a bit of beetle unground so she whacked it with the end of the pestle to just crack it.

Half a teaspoon of powdered moonstone would help to balance any befuddlement on top of the confusion; they were not the same.

The potion as she added her ingredients carefully turned a rich dark red; the smell was spicy and invigorating.

She went to the cupboard again for some cardomom pods and crushed them quickly.

Cardomom enhanced the effects of ginger and made it smell – and probably taste – nicer too. They were invigorating and whilst that was not strictly a wit sharpener it did lift the senses and make one feel more alert.

She made a note of it; simmered gently until the liquid had become a rich ruby colour then took the cauldron off the fire and prepared her decanter.

Fabian was busy struggling with what looked like a memory potion with some ingredients from the wit-sharpening solution; he was adding cardomoms too. Lynx looked flushed and unhappy but had succeeded in her first potion and was gathering ingredients for the wit-sharpening solution. Senagra was at around about the same stage as Lynx. Jade decanted her potion, read through the paper once more to check she had not left anything out and sat quietly back.

The invigilator came over.

"If you would like to leave your potions and notes in the tray with your name you may go if you have finished" she said quietly.

Jade nodded.

"Thank you."

The others beat her about the head and shoulders with cushions later.

"And you actually quoted Golapott?" squealed Lynx.

"I quoted Golapott" said Fabian

"BUGGER Golapott" said Senagra.

"Achille Crouch-Jones left in tears though" said Lynx, happily. "Let's go and taunt the Ravenclaws by asking how many of them quoted Golapott."

"Better have our _protego_ charms ready though!" grinned Fabian.

They needed them.

The Ravenclaws were in a filthy mood – except Francesca Longbottom who said

"You mean there are people who didn't quote Golapott?"

Lynx managed to look as scornful as Francesca and hoped she wouldn't drop too many marks for forgetting him.

She had added moonstone to her potion at the last minute after all.

Annis, Beth, Gabriel and Kate all thought they had done reasonably well; as Annis said,

"When in doubt, pick a potion that's kind of the opposite and throw a few extra things in with enough bullshit to sound like you thought deeply and weren't actually panicking."

Which had been more or less what everyone except Jade had done.

Romneya had concentrated on doing the first potion well, and did all she could to remember the wit-sharpening potion because it was better than having an empty second flask and no notes at all.

Teague declared he had blown it, had managed to make something that he fondly hoped was a befusing and confuddlement draught which was as close, he said, as he had come to it and made a laughter potion to counter it because if you were happy enough you didn't care how confused you might be which had to be better than staring into an empty cauldron weeping like some of them did, begorrah.

And Gorbrin, as a wart, did NOT make himself popular with the Ravenclaw fifth when Achille and Francesca were discussing it in the broom shed by asking brightly if one wouldn't base such an antidote on wit-sharpening potion with the addition of moonstone and Joberknoll feathers.

Francesca had to place Achille into prefect's detention for threatening to kill the 'snotty little goblin bastard'.

The written paper was easier.

There was a long question on the preparation of strengthening solution; Jade added a brief arithmantic note of the ideal time to permit it to mature, noting that in a school environment, over the weekend was usually considered close enough. She also noted that she would, if it were available, add a drop of Re'em blood as sucking on a Re'em had the same effect as the solution.

She noted the necessity for the correct number of stirs after adding the salamander blood before adding the pomegranate juice since a failure to be accurate could be catastrophic for the potion and spoil many hours work; as could reheating the cured potion too quickly after leaving it to mature.

The short questions were easy.

Giving Golapott's first and second laws presumably gave a chance to show that you knew them even if you had not cited the first one in the practical; and Jade wrote it out again gaily, adding the second law 'in any potions whose effects increase as a result of time through storage, any counteracting potion must be increased in counteractive dosage at an exponential rate to the increase of efficacy of the time-cured potion'. She added a brief note that the increase in efficacy could be worked out arithmantically if the ingredients were known but the averaged chart of such potions might be found in any good potion book and in the year book of the 'Transactions of the Learned Society of Potioneers'.

There were questions on swelling and shrinking potions, the Draught of Peace – nice for those who had mugged it up so carefully as a consolation prize – and on poison antidotes; and Jade thought she had done quite well on the whole. She avoided getting onto blended poisons and Golapott's third law, that being NEWT level; and finished early again.

Achille Crouch-Jones voiced loudly the opinion that Jade Snape was a disappointment to her father and was going to blow Potions because she'd obviously done so little in the exam, practical or written, that she was bound to fail.

Jade turned him into a parrot, because he mouthed meaningless phrases without understanding them, she said.

She refused to turn him back until teatime too.

The Transfigurations exam was next, written first, followed by practical in the afternoon.

The essay question on switching spells was an absolute gift.

There were questions on the _inanimatus Conjurus_ spell and on vanishing spells too; Jade had no trouble with summoning or vanishing things and added probably unnecessary arithmantic notes on the nature of both conjuration and vanishing and noted that in the Cyrillic script where B stands for the sound V the words Banishing and Vanishing had certain similarities that one had to be careful to avoid since the less drastic Banishing charm just shifted things elsewhere whereas _evanesco _ and related spells sent them to an 'other place' opened by a similar method to creating wizarding space, but since the success of transfiguration depended on mental association in many cases it was an interesting thing to consider.

It was a NEWT level answer or higher to an OWL level essay question; but Jade finished the exam with time to spare, even after all the other short answer questions.

The students must wait after dinner to go into the great hall a few at a time in alphabetical order to take their practical. Jade sat down cross legged on nothing and summoned a pack of cards to build houses with on insubstantial air.

The other students found it disconcerting; but Jade had been studying the nature of fey magic with Seagh; and having a blood joining to him was unravelling how to perform some of the more esoteric feats he and the fey took for granted.

Achille Crouch-Jones actually looked as though he was going to throw up.

"It's a simple transfiguration you know" Jade said calmly "To solidify the nature of the air by a change to its molecular structure."

The examiners were on their way in.

"Young lady would you come here?" said one of them.

Jade rose and walked delicately down a staircase that did not exist absently banishing her cards.

The thin man blinked.

"A change to the structure of the air?" he demanded "How?"

Jade got briefly very technical.

The man turned to the other examiners.

"Do we have to examine this one any further?" he demanded.

"As well to see she can do simple stuff as well as ridiculously complex" said the older woman.

"What is your name child?" said the thin man.

"Jade Snape" said Jade.

"Well, good luck with the rest" he said.

Jade curtseyed and resumed her perch holding out her hand to re-summon her cards.

She did not bother with wand or word; why would she need to? To Jade it was a simple trick that she had been doing for years.

The examiner stared, shook his head and went in muttering,

"Remarkable!" under his breath.

Lynx was one of the first ones in and changed a guinea fowl into a handsome guinea pig, summoned a cloth to wipe up dirt and banished the dirt, cloth and all, switched the contents of two bottles and made a death-watch beetle into a handsome pocket watch of chased silver.

Senagra went one better on the watch – she reckoned – because when you opened it up it had 'goblin made' engraved on the inside which made the examiner laugh out loud.

Both declared their animagus status and changed for extra marks.

So did Fabian when it was his turn. His watch was a nice functional steel wrist watch; which was, they declared afterwards, just like Fabian.

Jade was in a group with Annis and Beth Shipton, Jeanette Semple of Hufflepuff; Fabian Ramage and Kate Rosier just preceding them. There was only one group after them, Amy Templeton, Erwin Von Strang, Alice Weasley and Jake Webbe.

Jeanette went in first looking terrified; she had trouble with switching spells and spilled the contents of one bottle all over the floor.

She failed to summon a cloth but did manage to vanish the dirt as Jade later heard her saying mournfullly.

Annis Shipton was also in there; then as Jeanette stumbled out, Beth went in, then it was Jade's turn as Kate Rosier, rather methodical, finished last of her group while the next group were some of them nearly finished.

The Guinea fowl transfiguration was simple. Indeed it was all simple. Jade made a watch with a flowery enamelled face – decoration counted – and showed the action on the inside to the examiner beautifully covered with a chased dust cover and jewel action, as the opened watch played a pretty tinkling tune. The one from 'For a few dollars more' to be precise. Jade liked things to be right. The bottle switch was so easy she did not even bother with her wand – actually she had forgotten her wand for the Guinea Fowl transfiguration too and the vanishing spell. She declared her animagus form and demonstrated her elegant rock python.

"Miss Snape, I am concerned that you are supposed to be taking NEWT not OWL" said the thin examiner "How old are you?"

"Fourteen sir" said Jade "I was bumped up a year."

He blinked.

"Good gracious! Such aplomb and assurance from one so young? It's astounding!"

"I fought Voldemort sir. It kind of grows you up a bit" said Jade. "Besides, Transfigurations is fun and really rather easy."

"Well, apparently my dear, for some people!" said the examiner. "Well run along; a pleasure to meet you!"

Jade curtseyed and ran off to join her friends.

"Piece o' piss" she said.

"Was rather, wasn't it?" said Lynx. "Did you remember to get your wand out or did you forget like I did?"

"Forgot. Wasn't complex enough to need a wand now, was it?" shrugged Jade. "Used it on the watch, I wanted the chimes to be pretty; I used Lee Van Cleef's watch."

"Damn" said Lynx "Trust you to put an extra layer of pose on things; just like a ruddy Malfoy!"

Charms followed the same format; the written in the morning and the practical following it. There was an essay question on cheering charms and Jade thoughtfully wrote in the little poem the New Marauders had come up with,

"A cheering charm

should do no harm

and to the spirit bring only balm"

It was a good starting point and helped to focus the mind.

Jade had no trouble with practical charms but needed to think a bit more about the theory than for transfigurations.

The gift of a question to her was to discuss with examples as illustration the difference between the summoning charm _Accio_ and the transfigurational summoning; and the Banishing Charm and the vanishing spell.

Jade enjoyed herself.

Dissecting the incantation of the hovering charm – having to cite _wingardium leviosa_ correctly too was child's play.

Jade went to the practical really looking forward to it.

It was fairly standard; changing the colour of a rat, changing the size of a dinner plate, levitating and pouring from a wine glass whilst levitated and stilling dancing teacups – Jade piled them neatly too in two groups of four with the handles tucked neatly out of the way inside each other – and ordinary locomotor charms making a salt cellar turn cartwheels.

It was easy.

So was Defence Against the Dark Arts.

Listing the signs of a werewolf and how it differed from a normal wolf had the Maruaders fighting not to giggle. They had Remus their bloodbrother as an example to remember after all! Not to mention all the ones they had killed!

The definition of a dark creature was a standard of course.

The question on Kappa was quite a gift too, having seen David deal with them in the Triwizard though they all cited the usual trick of tricking them into bowing, Japanese fashion to empty out the water in their heads to drain their strength; and then Jade added laconically

"And if they won't buy politeness heave them up by one ankle with the _levicorpus_ spell which drains them out nicely."

There were other questions that were surprising in their simplicity; and the Marauders looked for hidden traps in them. They had forgotten that they were used to dealing with Dark Arts beyond the level of most NEWT students.

They all finished early.

The practical started with a boggart.

Lynx , Fabian and Senagra banished theirs back into the box with the _ridikulus_ spell; Jade growled at hers and it ran squeaking back on its own accord.

"Miss Snape" she had the thin examiner again "What do you see? I was unable to get a view of your vision."

"I see a wee black mannikin" said Jade "Always have since we killed Voldemort. Not a lot to fear after that, is there?"

He blinked.

"I suppose not" he said "Why did it flee?"

"Because a boggart fears most knowing that you know" said Jade "And if you project thoughts at its rudimentary legilimency that you're bigger and meaner than it is it don't like it above half."

"I see" said the examiner. "Let's try a few counter curses…_Den…._!"

He had not got the word finished before Jade's protective charm covered her face, a small neat shield to cover from Densaugeo, the tooth enlarging curse.

"_incend…"_

His fire spell was quenched with the flame-freezing charm.

"You are very fast" he said.

"I'm still alive" said Jade laconically.

"Do you have a Patronus?"

Jade nodded.

Her patronus was the same as her mother's, a prince-knight on horseback. She projected it at the examiner's nod.

The examiner blinked.

Most people stuck to animals; using human forms was most unusual! But it was undoubtedly a corporeal patronus.

And Jade was dismissed.

"Four down, seven to go" she commented.

Several Ravenclaws seethed.

Especially Achille Crouch-Villeneuve.

As if it wasn't bad enough that she was just a kid a year younger than the rest of them she was taking more OWLs than most of them and seemed to find them all a breeze!

Malfoys were not worth the trouble to have anywhere near you; he was GLAD Lucius had turned down the betrothal offer on Erica who was far too much influenced by this Snape cousin of hers!


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

A single, rather contemptuous, examiner arrived at Prince Peak for the OWL examinations.

She blinked to see Severus.

"Professor Snape? I'm surprised Miss Cackle has employed you, I thought she was content with Miss Hardbroom".

"Miss Cackle is dead" said Severus coldly "You appear not to keep up with the large amount of information I sent to the Ministry of Education. An attack by Odessa was countered by a group which included both Miss Hardbroom and myself – she turned, naturally, to me as her nephew. I am headmaster here now. The educational standards are going to improve; one examiner will be sufficient this year but you really SHOULD read through the extended curriculum I shall be instituting as laid out in the draft proposals I sent to the office. I take it that it is against some arcane custom for departments of the same ministry to engage in meaningful conversation one with another in case knowledge actually escapes and becomes too widespread."

She flushed.

"There is no need to be sarcastic, Professor Snape."

"I felt there should have been no need for an explanation Madam Trewkettle. However, the deficiencies of the Ministry will NOT I trust affect the results of my pupils if the extended list of their attempted OWLs has also not been passed to you?"

It was a tacit threat that if her dislike of him made her mark the girls down he would make waves; and Madam Trewkettle knew it. And she did have the extended list – which had surprised her when she was passed it – but had not bothered, as Severus knew full well, to read anything in the files about the changes at Prince Peak.

"I will of course, as always, examine the girls to the best of my ability" she said.

"Excellent" said Severus "They are not – obviously cannot be – up to Hogwarts standards but I believe you will have a pleasant surprise when you look into their increased knowledge base."

"You were a nasty little boy at Hogwarts, Severus, but one cannot deny that you have very high standards that you expect from your pupils" said Madam Trewkettle "Even though I am not sure I approve of your methods. We shall see if the standard improves over time or whether the school dissolves through the girls being removed."

"Oh I'm losing half a dozen who don't like the idea of going co-educational but I've had as many letters of support and offers to send sons to me as well as daughters" said Severus "Which is pleasing; this er, monstrous regiment of not-quite women is a trifle disconcerting to say the least. I can't remember if it was Hawke or Abraxus Malfoy that coined the phrase. Abraxus I think; I'm sure it was Gryffindor House had an influx of female first years when he was head of house."

"Well we shall see" said Madam Trewkettle.

The six OWL students were nervous, of course! Severus had reassured them saying,

"Just do your best; you can't do worse than under the previous regime, and you know you've been well prepared for years on potions at least. You have practised over and over; it will be fine."

"Oh sir, you know how rotten I am at Potions" said Sylvia Hubble "And it's the only one we ARE prepared on and I'm still bad at it, what if I fail?"

"Well here's an incentive to pass" said Severus "If you fail I make you retake next year. Stuck with me for another whole year, quite a punishment!"

"Oh sir YOU'RE not a punishment, only Potions!" said Sylvia with her usual tactless style.

Sylvia was delighted with the practical; the Confusing and Befuddlement potion was a nice short one and she was good at remembering the herbs to put in things it was other ingredients she had trouble with; but Miss Hardbroom had made them perform tests of brewing potions from memory all through school and this was one she knew quite well even if only because she had got it wrong early last year and Miss Hardbroom had mentioned that Sylvia scarcely needed a potion to make her confused and befuddled.

Its counter was harder; and Sylvia plumped for the wit-sharpening potion – something Miss Hardbroom had sighed would not come amiss for any of them – and hoped she remembered everything correctly.

Esmerelda Jorkins was working away happily and looked as though she was actually enjoying herself.

Sylvia herself was not unhappy!

Rosamund Mandrake seemed fairly happy too and Hillary Cantripp. Neither Pamela Blackwood nor Erica Kettle seemed to be having too much trouble either. Sylvia relaxed a little.

So long as the written exam was not too tough she was in with a good chance of passing, which since her grades had hovered all her school life between 'P' poor and 'D' dreadful – and one awful paper 'T' Troll - she was well satisfied.

The written was no breeze; and Sylvia could not even remember who Golapott was let alone his laws; but she answered most of the questions and though she had not done terribly badly at it.

Esmerelda beamed afterwards.

"Well that was a breeze, wasn't it, even you must have thought so Silvie, with old Golapott coming up after we used him in practice in the practical!" she said.

Everyone else started shouting at Esmerelda so Sylvia knew she was not alone in wondering what she was talking about!

Once Esmerelda explained there were several groans of comprehension.

"I applied the principle but I forgot the wretched law" groaned Rosamund.

They demanded a post mortem with Severus who listened through.

"Using either the memory potion or the wit sharpening potion should get you a pass" he said "It's not very original but it shows an appropriate direction in picking your counter. Those who blended ingredients should be looking at 'E' through 'O' on the practical – depending on how well it went – and would probably get a pass for application of good theory even if you blew up your cauldrons. They did this test when, let me see, it was Bill Weasley was up and they had to evacuate the dungeon because he exploded salamander blood all over the ceiling and set fire to the place. You should count it a victory not to make that mistake Miss Hubble."

"Salamander blood? Were we supposed to use salamander blood?" said Esmerelda in dismay "I thought that was used in the strengthening solution, it was in the written!"

"It is" said Severus dryly "Bill lost it totally and threw in everything he could think of that strengthened anything, wits or otherwise. It was a Weasley moment. It's funny to look back on but at the time I was devastated; I wanted to strangle him. He was one of my first OWL students that I'd taken through the full OWL course from third year. I wanted to crawl into a hole and pull it in after me. I got used to Weasleys and their unexpected moments in potioneering after that of course; Ron, opening the bottom of his cauldron to gate in an endless supply of frogs for example. I have no doubt I shall get used to Hubble moments too over the generations."

Sylvia grinned shyly.

Professor Snape was so droll in his dry way! Just as strict as Miss Hardbroom but somehow more approachable!

Sylvia WAS looking forward to the next exam, Transfigurations. She was good at that!

And it was easy. Summoning spells had been something new that Madam Malfoy had introduced them to and she and Madam Parnassus had run a joint lesson on the differences between charm-style summoning and banishing and transfiguration style. Madam Malfoy had been a little bit too Arithmantic at first until Madam Parnassus had poked her – they seemed to be really good friends or maybe they were sisters as they looked a bit alike – and Madam Malfoy had pulled out a wonderfully simple explanation that transfigurational summoning actually made something new out of the very energy around you and the summoning charm merely brought that which already existed to you. Likewise the banishing charm shifted something from one place to another but the vanishing spell caused it to go totally out of the common universe as Madam Malfoy described it.

"One cannot UNmake something, the universe does not permit it" had said Madam Malfoy "The summoned objects – inanimate or animate – dissipate after a while unless a permanency charm is placed on the transfiguration; the bonds that hold them together are not strong. From energy they come and to energy they return. Creating something new can be done, but it is complex and takes a lot of raw power. When we vanish things we open a gate to an uncommon universe and sent them to it. Whether it is the same uncommon universe or whether there are millions of little wizarding space rubbish bags all over the place I am not entirely sure. We keep having little irritations like Voldemort and Odessa to interrupt my researches."

This had made them giggle a little nervously that Madam Malfoy should refer to dark wizards as 'little irritations'.

However such clear explanations helped to separate the two subjects that they had always been taught as one; and Sylvia felt she produced a cloth out of her wand with some aplomb and opened up the other universe to send it and the dirt to without worrying too much about whether there was just one little bag or a whole tip of rubbish.

She made a nice silver watch from her death-watch beetle and made it reach the hour to chime as she made it. It was, she thought, a nice touch; and Madam Malfoy had told them that the more little touches and personal twists they added to such things the more bonus marks they got.

Sylvia thought she had done well.

The Charms written was also a gift, with the question on the differences between summoning and banishing charms as compared to Transfigurational summoning and vanishing! They should all do well on that, though Sylvia struggled with the definition of a switching charm.

The practical was not too bad either.

Sylvia opted for taking a deep breath and stilling each teacup in turn, a strategy Madam Parnassus had suggested when dealing with multiple moving objects.

Hillary Cantripp rather smugly declared she had stopped hers all simultaneously and stacked them in two stacks; but Charms was Hillary's thing as Transfigurations was Sylvia's.

They all felt they had done rather well on that.

Professor Snape had insisted that they learn the basics of Defence against the Dark Arts; and said they might as well sit the exam, because if they failed they would still have gained for having learned by it since dealing with the real world was a greater test than the artificiality of devised tests.

Actually the question on werewolves might have been written for them; it was one of the creatures Professor Snape Von Strang was determined they should recognise owing to the use of such by Odessa.

Sylvia couldn't remember the difference between a kappa and a grindylow; she knew it was a water demon. It didn't sound in any respect English so that must be the Japanese water demon.

She left that and a space to go on; better to go back than waste time.

It was amazing how much they had learned; Professor Von Strang was a good teacher, and being in the small MSHG with tales both funny and scary told before breakfast by professors in an informal mood had taught an awful lot. Sylvia thought she and Esmerelda ought to do reasonably well on the theory. The practical would be harder.

It was.

They were expecting a Boggart however; and as it was the most common dark creature that could be encountered anywhere, Professor Von Strang had coached them thoroughly, though when Esmerelda had had hysterics at her boggart and had been unable at first to repel it, it was really impressive to see the Professor just pick the thing up – in Esmerelda's case Voldemort – and throw it in the box.

For Sylvia her greatest fear was Miss Hardbroom turning into a werewolf. It was irrational; but Miss Cackle had turned into something terrible or had seemed to, although her brain knew it was only Miss Cackle's sister. And Miss Hardbroom had always scared her, the werewolves they had heard howling that terrible night an added dimension.

Professor Von Strang had shown her some things called 'cartoon films' of impossible wolves doing funny things; and suggested she use the _ridukulus_ vision to have the Hardbroom-werewolf take off its fur like a scarlet woman taking off an fur cloak and dancing voluptuously.

It worked rather well.

Esmerelda was still working on making Voldemort into Lord Convolvumort; Professor Von Strang had provided pictures of Draco Malfoy in costume and a recording of his broadcasts for her to work with.

In the end that was fairly easy.

Countering spells was hard and Sylvia felt bruised and battered and was slightly singed. Her teeth were all the right size though; she had countered that jinx.

"I suppose you Cackle girls can't produce a Patronus at all" said Madam Trewkettle.

"Not a corporeal one but I can get something" said Sylvia, rather put out at the dismissive tone.

Madam Trewkettle was surprised.

"Show me then" she said.

Sylvia's patronus was rather wispy and not very well formed and was some form of human with hair tossed in the breeze.

They had all seen Severus up on the tower the night of the battle, chanting, when they peered out of the windows; and they had found him terrifying, impressive and comforting all in equal measure. He was their protector.

Madam Trewkettle made a mark on her notes; and that was another exam over.

Four exams taken and not yet finished; as many she expected or had hoped to take in total!

And still three to go!

Not that anyone had any expectation of doing well in History of Magic.

Miss Cackle had a tendency of skirting over the 'not nice' bits.

Human nature being what it is, as Severus had said dryly, the not nice bits tend to predominate.

As expected the exam was fairly incomprehensible.

Sylvia wrote,

"In the Goblin Rebellions Goblins rebelled. I don't know when and I don't know why. I expect they felt stroppy about something. I never met a goblin except the ones that fought against Odessa who seemed just like everyone else. Probably the wizards of the time had as bitty and useless an education as at Miss Cackle's and so ended up making the same mistakes all over again. Professor Snape says those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. Professor Snape says nine people out of ten will behave like morons if not properly educated and that most people are too stupid to accept learning if it hits them in the face. He says that most of the morons work in the ministry and always have done so probably that is the cause of the goblin rebellions."

It was her own rebellion and she enjoyed it.

The enchanting exam practical involved picking a musical instrument and making it play a tune of one's choice on a command word.

Sylvia picked a xylophone and got some notes to tinkle.

"What tune have you picked dear? I don't recognise it" said Miss Trewkettle.

"I haven't a clue; I can't even hum a tune accurately" said Sylvia "And I'd like to make a note that I think it's unfair that we're tested on musical skill when we've studied enchanting. I know music is used in higher level chanting classes but that's not entirely the same, is it?"

"I note your objection" said Madam Trewkettle. "Dear me, it is a little unfair perhaps. I shall have to confer with my fellows. Perhaps I can mark you on the complexity and number of notes you use at the same time rather then the TUNEFULLNESS; I will permit you to take the test again on that understanding."

"Thank you ma'am" said Sylvia, thankful to be able to demonstrate ability not musical skill! Enchanting was not her best subject but she felt that she had produced something with enough complexity to at least gain a pass.

The written test had a long question on the application of chanting within the skill of enchanting objects and covered the difference between a charmed and an enchanted object. This was easy enough being a question of time; charms generally wore off whereas the act of enchanting tied a spell permanently to the object. Sylvia cited as an example a colour change charm to the hair, which although it did not wear of per se did grow out; whereas if the hair follicles themselves were enchanted the hair would continue to grow as the charmed colour or indeed if one set it up that way a rainbow of charmed colours which gave it more flexibility than using a transfigurational change, though less easy to get rid of if you changed your mind. There were pros and cons for each method.

Sylvia had been rather stuck by Madam Lupin's pink hair on the night of the battle.

It was a shame that they had not learned more about chanting as a part of spell use rather than just learning some chants by rote; Professor Snape was remedying that with the seniors but it meant a less full answer on that question.

As to wand woods and their meanings, Sylvia in common with most of the rest was all at sea. As Mr Blossom had assured Professor Snape that he had assiduously covered all important aspects of enchanting, and as Professors Malfoy and Parnassus were trying to separate that from Charms and Transfigurations in their heads it was not surprising that the new Professors had taken his words at face value.

They had been promised a new professor to teach enchanting next year; and Sylvia was sorely tempted to try for NEWTs in any OWL she actually passed on the principle that she would have a better chance of passing a NEWT with good teachers than the OWL with five years of virtual time wasting!

Esmerelda beamed over the exam.

She was interested in enchanting and had covered wand woods with Mr Blossom; which had been what he meant, for he only referred to the students taking that aspect of his subject.

Sylvia ground her teeth and hoped to have got a pass. This year and next, the requirements usually requested by the professors was to be dropped to a pass; which as Professor Snape had pointed out that he usually required an 'O' at OWL to go further with potions was quite a concession. Though he had given his ghost of a smile and added,

"Or a lot of very good fast talk."

Madam Parnassus had told Sylvia that she had talked herself into a NEWT class on an 'A' grade pass only since Professor Snape had known her grades had been affected by rather terrible things happening in her home life and that she had achieved 'E' at Newts to her great joy and pride.

"And in a way I was prouder of that then my three 'O' grades" she said "I only took four NEWTS – because of the problems that had held me up – and now I'm teaching so there's no harm aiming as high as you can with a large pinch of realism. And even at Hogwarts, three NEWTs is the rule you know."

Sylvia had been grateful to Madam Parnassus.

Professor Snape was as sarcastic as Madam Hardbroom but somehow he made one less stressed over what he referred to as Hubble moments.

The last exam was Herbology.

The written exam covered the use of fertilisers, self-fertilising plants and the use and misuse of dragon's dung on screechsnaps. There were short questions too on the treatment of mandrake and the differences between Flitterbloom and Devil's Snare; and a few diagrams to label.

That was moderately easy save for the long question; Madam Hardbroom had mostly taught from the point of view of recognising and preparing plants for potion making as there was no point teaching what Miss Cackle did not permit to be experienced practically.

A hastily constructed greenhouse had seen lessons taken by Madam Devlin which had been fun, fascinating and occasionally uncomfortable – stinging sap did – and it was with more hope than expectation that the class took on the practical.

Typically it was Esmerelda who managed NOT to be bitten by her fanged geranium.

Some of them managed to collect bubotuber pus with more aplomb than others; and Sylvia only required minimal medical attention afterwards.

There was a good chance she might even pass.

No WAY was she taking THAT to NEWT; not with having to re-pot mandrakes!

And it was over and she could relax and look forward – really, truly look forward – to a new school year with new things to learn. If only she was a first year to have the chance of learning all of them! Still, Professor Snape had said that anyone who could fit first year introduction classes into their curriculum was welcome to attend any of the new classes for pure interest's sake; and that he had FINALLY managed to negotiate an OWL in Chanting and Ritual which the sixth might study if they chose, which being so he would schedule the timetable accordingly to fit them in with the fourth who would be starting it and let those of the fifth who were prepared to make up the extra work do it in a year or as a lower sixth exam.

It was good that he was so ready to be flexible and so were his staff!

Life, thought Sylvia, was GOOD!

It had been Lucius Malfoy who had volunteered to be a chanting and ritual examiner; he felt he had learned quite enough from Severus providing he had a syllabus to study!

Oblivious to the trials of the Prince Peak girls over their OWLs Jade and friends continued with theirs.

Of their set only Senagra and Jem were taking History of Magic; and Senagra hoped that her brother's sacrifice of a pass mark would have helped things to be set right.

Indeed the questions seemed less biased; and she enjoyed answering the long essay 'discuss the reasons behind the goblin rebellions, with illustration and example, and chart the increase of aggression based on each previous incident."

It was a deep and complex question; and Senagra was scrupulously fair, citing overly hot-headed goblins as well as mean spirited and often cheating wizards. She pointed out that the main reason lay in many ways in the mutual belief in negative racial stereotypes, all too often reinforced by the most prominent personalities of each side and was well pleased with the phrase.

The short paper was a relative doddle as she said later; and Jem agreed.

"I got a bit bogged down in the essay though" he sighed "And I mixed up Ug the Unreliable with Urg the Unclean and had to go through hastily and change stuff when I realised."

"At least you realised" said Senagra "I find some wizard names awfully easy to muddle up, like Arbuthnot Bullivant and Arthur Bulstrode. Only three hundred years and a couple on hundred miles between them! Anyway, I've got a soft spot for old Ug; he could have been a marauder, I mean how much chutzpah is that to organise a demiguise derby and abscond with the winnings with nary a beast on the course….. anyone who'd bet on the outcome of a race between invisible beasts deserves all they jolly well get in my opinion."

"Well you do have a point there" laughed Jem "Like Severus says, people are moronic!"

Arithmancy was the province of Jade, Lynx, Senagra and Erwin as well as assorted Ravenclaws, Salvia Pippin, Annis Shipton, and Kate Rosier. Fabian would have liked to have studied arithmancy but he knew when he was beat!

Kate wanted to undertake a NEWT level study on predicting the way quidditch players flew given certain circumstances; she had already started it and sundry of her team and other interested players had played impromtu games for her while she filmed on sixteen millimetre film to study. She had a theory too about the flight of the snitch, which although supposedly random might even so be predictable. Only Jade followed that and Kate had been loaned books on muggle chaos theory by Krait.

The paper was long and quite tough but Jade thought it enjoyable. They had to calculate the amount of wizarding energy required to open a given volume of wizarding space and decide the minima and maxima as well as the ultimate number of wizards who should be involved in its construction. There was also a section on numerology and calculating which of two beaux a witch should choose based on the numerological synthesis of their respective names. Finally a potion was given by ingredient and result on which they were to calculate the best number of stirs, the timing, and the directions. It was not a potion generally used as a school potion being a minor medical potion for the curing of gall stones.

Jade, with time in hand at the end, noted it on scrap paper, including a copy of her calculations, to keep for personal reference.

It did not seem likely that she would need it but you never knew.

And the principle of it, to break up unwanted horny lumps inside might have other applications.

Lynx grinned at her afterwards.

"I thought you'd have time to take a copy! It can go in the book of wickedness I thought?"

"Spot on; and we'll have to copy it all for our own use at Prince Peak. Are we going to put it on the loo network too?"

"It's going to have to go more on the shower network; we've run out of loo stalls I think" said Lynx. "All right, I know, near enough!"

Several of them too were taking Ancient Runes, for researching ancient rites or potions and for help with the chanting they were learning between themselves. This was Jade, Fabian, Senagra, Jem and Erwin and a few others in the year. There had been significant dropout levels in this class; more so even than in arithmancy.

After the crash course in Gaelic of the year before to free the house elves from compulsions to punish themselves the passages in Ogham were a gift. The Bloodgroup students chortled silently but happily. The ritual passages in ancient Egyptian were less pleasant and Jade recalled that Hawke had fallen down a bit on the translation of one of the hieroglyphs. Some of them were so very similar! She concentrated hard.

The passage in Finnish was a little tricky; but Jade recalled the homework Fabian and Lynx were doing for comparative magic and was able to make a wild conjecture and work from there. It fell quickly into place once she had got started and she was glad she had read the textbook 'In the Name of Finland' for interest.

Fabian grinned at her.

"I LIKED the last question" he said.

"It was HORRIBLE!" said Senagra.

"Nearly impossible" said Jem "I guessed about half of it."

"Likewise" said Erwin.

"It wasn't very fair" said Jade "I only got it because I read other people's textbooks and remembered the passage; epic poetry has its place but not in ruddy exam questions."

The others in the class threw things at her; especially Lakhshmi Indrani of Ravenclaw who was studying comparative magic as well as ancient runes and was peeved that someone NOT studying her subject had remembered a passage in it that she had forgotten!

Enchanting was next and Jade happily set up a harp to play one of two tunes as you chose, both complex Irish melodies. Lynx and Senagra were the only ones of her set taking this and they stuck to more conventional keyboards of one kind or another. Jade chose the harp purely in order to show her virtuosity in enchanting a glissand, a very tricky piece of work.

The written exam's long question on the use of chanting in enchanting was to Jade a gift of a question; and the definition of an enchantment as compared to a charm was easy. Jade wrote that in general terms the difference lay in two fields; the duration, since charms were not all of permanent duration, and in reproducible operation by others than the caster of the original charm. She used the flying charms of brooms as an example, referred to as charms but in fact enchantments that meant that any operator of a broom could use the steering charm not just the caster; and that indeed an enchantment could be operated by somebody with very little or no understanding of magic providing that they had some magical ability.

As for the question on wand woods they had all, as she unkindly put it to her fellows, listened to Willow bellyaching on about it to know such things backwards.

There was a rest – from Jade's point of view – for the Divination exam.

Annis and Gabriel were the class stars here, having a very nice little earner writing a column for 'Divination – tomorrow!' under the name Agnes Eagle; Annis was something of a seer and Gabriel was more solidly good at using devices like cards or matchsticks or tealeaves to make unspectacular but generally accurate predictions. It was a disappointment to Madam Spikenard that her grandaughter Salvia Pippin had no second sight abilities; but it was a treat to have Gabriel and Annis in her class, already an item and likely to improve the stock of the few seers in Britain. Gabriel did not care that Annis was a hag; and with good food and happiness she did not look, as Willow Prince had cynically put it, any worse than the run-of-the-mill Prince or Bulstrode anyway.

Willow did down her own looks; and certainly her husband was happy enough with them!

They declared the written paper easy enough having picked questions on tarot prediction as the easiest – in their view – and found the reading of various drawn symbols representing tealeaves easy.

The practical was always a bit hit and miss: visions rarely came to order.

Annis muttered something about a jade wolf to devour the golden son; and swayed horribly; and swore she had never said anything. She laughed hollowly over the tealeaves.

"Ah, Odessa again I see" she said pointing to the double sig rune. "Ah well, I suppose we need some entertaining for our sixth form education."

Gabriel was no seer; however nor was he any fool. He managed to sound eerie enough in a declaration that the crystal ball was blacked out by the black carrion of Odin, an oblique reference to Odessa. If enough of them who were able to show enough talent by other means gave warnings about Odessa the ministry MIGHT do something. His tealeaves however sat in a sullen lump.

"I usually read coffee grounds" he said looking innocent. "No, sorry, nothing's happening today."

The examiner sighed.

They would have to change the practical; one could not really expect visions on command even in a keyed up state. Perhaps the students might be given a choice of crystal ball, cards or palmistry.

He was getting sick of being told that the entrants saw an ugly wizard with a wart on his nose; which was only the total internal reflection of himself. He preferred it when they made up rubbish. This one sounded genuine as had the hag; and Madam Spikenard had tipped him that she had two truly talented ones.

Coffee grounds indeed!


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

The set paper in care of magical animals covered magical snake-like beings and fairy beings and Jade reckoned both were a gift. Of Runespoors, Ashwinders, Occamy and Basilisks she was well informed; and held forth cheerfully on Pixies, Leprechauns, Ghillie Dhus, Bwbwachod, erklings, gnomes, pogrebin, elves and the fey.

She wrote far more than she needed to.

The practical involved the handling of bowtruckles, the correct procedure to dedoxify a room and the separation of Knarls from hedgehogs, a simple matter involving seeing which ones got stroppy over being offered milk.

Cleaning a firecrab was a tricky little business but Jade had no trouble. Lynx, Fabian and Senagra came out slightly singed, Jem set light to the curtains and Erwin set light to the examiner.

Kate Rosier congratulated Erwin and said it was the best thing she'd heard all day. She loathed firecrabs and had picked up a very nasty burn.

The rest of the viva voce exam was to advise on the care and diet of a sick flying horse other than a thestral. Jem did not distinguish himself by suggesting that if it was Madam Maxime's Abraxans, stuffing it full of whisky until it didn't care would probably work.

Jade made the examiner's eyes glaze over by going into the twisted gut problems that all horses including flying ones were prone too and the medical transfigurations that were needed to cure them.

Lynx said they were likely to give her a pass at high grade just to get rid of her and shut her up.

Jade beamed.

"That was the idea, hadn't you guessed?"

Hagrid was delighted with Jade! She was one of his favourite people – she and Lydia had spent a lot of time with him in the Voldemort years before they started school – and HE approved of her answers!

Herbology was all fairly easy too.

It was all, as Jade said coarsely a load of crap.

Being about fertiliser in the main question she could not, entirely, be faulted for that summation.

Unlike Cackle's gels, the Hogwarts students had been getting their hands dirty from day one and knew all about overfeeding screechsnaps with dragons dung; some kids did it on purpose to watch them writhe uncomfortably, an exercise that had Jade for one jinxing them for unnecessary cruelty to er, plants. Screechsnaps were semi-sentient and Jade had been wont to point out that they'd soon catch it if they started feeding poison to owls or tying cans to the tails of cats and that it was exactly the same thing.

As a result she was able to write knowledgeably about how to relieve the condition of overfed screechsnaps, having done it regularly from a time before she had even started school being wont to beat up bullies whether she was entitled to do so or not.

She also added notes about the maturation times of dragons dung into fertiliser under various conditions.

The questions on mandrakes and the differences between devils snare and flitterbloom were easy.

The practical was no worse than repotting fanged geraniums and collecting bubotuber pus. The latter at least Jade had been doing for her father since she was about eight; and suffered no ill effects for being quick and accomplished. Nor did she have any trouble with her fanged geranium; she charmed it by singing to it.

Muggle Studies was next.

Jade and Jem were taking the subject; and mostly with the view to write knowledgably about muggles rather than the accepted view of muggles, though rumour had it that the ministry was now employing a muggle relative of a wizarding child to mark the work.

There were several essay questions to choose four from and Jade chose "Why muggles prefer not to know; explain'; 'the importance of electricity to muggle home life'; 'The priorities of an average muggle family'; and 'The impact on muggle society of mass communication devices.'

The last could be interpreted somewhat broadly; and Jade chose to do so, sketching the development of the telegraph, telephone, wireless, television and internet. Jade explained that the effects were incalculably great since mass media helped to prevent oppressive societies from hoodwinking their subjects into thinking there was no other way, although in affluent societies there were two problems in that mass entertainment systems tended to dumb down entertainment and aim for the lowest common denominator; and that though muggles had access to vast amounts of information at the touch of a few buttons, they were alas like wizards only human and although infinitely better informed than ever before were almost certainly no wiser.

Jade, Lynx and Fabian were doing Geomancy together and were a little disappointed that they would not be able to follow it up at Prince Peak as a NEWT elective. Fabian and Lynx had already spoken to Professor Khan and negotiated a correspondence course on his subject, Comparative magic, however!

The Geomancy paper covered unplottable places, the use of ley lines to increase speed of travel and included a map to plot the principle ley lines of Britain. There was also a question concerning the impact of power stations and high voltage power lines on travel. It was something Padfoot had been investigating and encouraging his class to look into and obviously he had added it to the syllabus too. This made sense; as it had a great impact on the average travelling wizard.

The practical was fairly standard; the applicant and broomstick were taken somewhere blindfold by apparition and left to make their way back by ley line and other transport. Time would count for marks.

Jade decided it was as good a time as any to test out the use of feyspace as she had been studying how to get into it.

It was easy enough to enter; she had already done that and found it like looking through cobwebs, a bit like being under the invisibilty cloak.

It only took Jade a few minutes to get back to school – startling the examiner into saying

"Oh no, not another one" since David too had been ridiculously fast.

Jade beamed at him.

The journey had been just long enough for her to do some mental calculations about the nature of feyspace and to come to the conclusion they the use of it was how whichever Peverell brother it had been had made the true invisibility cloak.

They would not have to take one of the two marauder cloaks in the marauding room; she could make her own true cloak using feyspace and her enchanting skills, in fact a better cloak than the ordinary invisibility cloaks the marauders possessed.

Jade was in an excellent mood!

Lynx and Fabian enjoyed the exam for comparative magic; it dwelt on apsaras, the Indian fey; genies and efreeti of the middle east; and western Sidhe, and the different ways each were perceived both by muggles and wizards in their own communities. There were other questions; on the use of dreaming and walkabout by native Antipodean wizards, the use of zombies and inferii for common tasks in parts of Africa and the West Indies with that same heritage; and a longer question on the use also in African and West Indian cultures of drums in chanting and ritual as compared with the use of bells and gongs in the Far East, inviting the student to explore, compare and contrast.

The only exam left was Astronomy; Erwin was taking that because he was interested. So too were Annis and Gabriel because of its ties to Divination through the Astrological connection. Naturally the practical of this exam took place at night to view the night sky; typically the written exam was in the morning and the entrants were sent to lie down quietly all afternoon.

Erwin thought the questions in the exam had been rather fortuitous, the main question having been on the stars in Leo. As Professor Black had named his and Willow's twin children after two of the stars in that constellation – one for his brother Regulus, the name of the star also catalogued as Alpha Leonis, and the other, their little girl for Beta Leonis, Denebola, Erwin was well away. Although not a member of the blood group he associated with them and had been involved with the family discussions over whether Sirius was going to stick to naming children after stars out of Leo – appropriate really given that Willow was a cat animagus – and if so how appropriate they were. Algieba, Gamma Leonis, was reckoned reasonable enough for a little girl but Asad Australis was out of the question, and Adhafera, Rassalas and Alterf sounded distinctly foreign. As did the names for Regulus in other languages, Magha the mighty, Miyau the centre or Cor Leonis the lion's heart. As a royal star – Regulus meaning The Ruler – those who had looked such things up said Sirius might be better using names like Roy and Regan which people could at least pronounce or looking for other stars that were a bit less outlandish or going with the doggy theme and picking dogs from the numerous pack of Actaeon. Especially as several of those names meant things like soot, black-paw and so on, suitable to joke on his family name.

Sirius had said that he and Willow would pick their own names thank you and please to stay out of it.

However the discussion had given them a very good understanding of the sickle of Leo and Erwin was grateful!

Naming random constellations just by their stars and writing in the main stars by the labels was not hard; and Erwin slept the sleep of the just all afternoon.

The practical was always going to be harder; finding stars on a star map was always easier than identifying them in the sky and Erwin could have kicked himself for confidently finding Betelgeuse only to realise that he was actually looking at Mars and his telescope was too out of focus to pick up its disk.

Other than that it went well.

And then they were all free; no more exams!

St Jodoc's came with their cricket teams and asked facetiously if the quagmire was yet playable on. The current captain, Ray Brent, was an affable but rather too hearty boy who made jokes about the Scots – rather heavy jokes involving a lot of saying 'och aye the noo' in a Devon accent – and Sirius, who was a keen supporter of his wife's carefully honed team winced and remembered James Potter's manner at a similar age.

Fortunately the Hogwarts cricket team were a tolerant bunch and though the temptation to jinx the muggle must have been there they manfully resisted.

Lionel had turned down being head of muggle games, being Head Boy as well, and had handed the cap to Melody Bloom who had been on the team longest bar Jade, who was going anyway. The first eleven played Lionel, Melody, Mary-Anne, Tamsin, Tim, Ross, Freya, Arjelan, Cholaka plus Dimsie and Jade and the latter said rather ruefully that it was the Lionel Dell and friends show. She was delighted that Dimsie Burke had learned to play cricket from Lee Nuffield and had become keen; but wanted to tease Lionel so that Dimsie didn't feel left out – especially next year when Jade would be at Prince Peak. Of course Dimsie might join that blood group; that would remain to be seen.

Lionel had grinned at Jade's banter.

"We just like to join in things together" he said.

Two others of his group were in the second eleven, Heather as captain and Grigs, Lionel's cousin. Pearl Brocklehurst played in practice but was a bit nervous of playing muggles as yet and helped with teas instead along with Mischa and Vasilica, neither of whom could get the hang of cricket.

Philip Burke had also learned cricket from Lee and wanted to join in; Mad, Chad and Leo came as a matched set and did amazing things on the outfield, Harmony Bloom and Albert Macmillan were also established members and it turned out that Ian Pender Malfoy also played and had been teaching the other of Lucius' children a little. Hadrian Malfoy, Vladimir Malfoy's son, was already a useful little bat from his previous muggle junior school; and Gorbrin played reserve.

The first eleven's match was almost interrupted when a microlight went over far too low with apparent engine trouble and everyone ducked.

Of course Jade called out to the St Jodoc's captain, on bowl,

"There you are, a few feet lower and it could have been the first ever case of 'plane stops Ray…'."

It was not only her own team who cuffed her soundly for that awful pun.

The first eleven lost by eight runs; the second eleven won by seventeen runs and a wicket just before the umpire – Archie Trumball – called light on them.

It was a good match and thoroughly enjoyed by all.

A few days later they travelled to the Henderson Girls' School which now had thirty two pupils and had scraped together two elevens.

The first eleven, generally speaking last year's only eleven, was never going to beat the Hogwarts first eleven of experienced cricketers but they put up a spirited and valiant defence and the visitors cheered them their efforts. Their juniors were also a valiant bunch – almost all first years and sturdy little players who forced the less cohesive second Hogwarts eleven to a draw for lack of time. The Hogwarts players cheered them too.

Fortunately they were all totally mugglish muggles and nobody noticed the goblins on the team!

And then it was the end of year feast and the presentation of the school cup and the various shields.

Slytherin had the Quidditch shield; but Gryffindor managed to pip them for the School Cup by being remarkably Hufflepuffish in behaviour all year with a bit more intelligence, as Jade described it.

House Slytherin had been largely involved in the rescue of the Cacklites but had also, generally speaking, managed to get into more trouble, both the nasty trouble of the kind caused by Parkinson and her followers and the more innocuous kind that Bella and her band managed to get up to, including the spectacular, funny but definitely frowned upon jape on the penultimate day of managing to get the suits of armour jigging solemnly and insisting that passers by join in.

It disrupted things for several hours until all the suits of armour were de-jigged and Slytherin lost a collective of thirty points from Professors who did not want to join in jigging.

True, Madam McGonagall gave Slytherin fifty points for ingenuity as well as docking them fifty points for being irritating but her balanced approach and appreciation of their skill was not practised by all. Especially as the culprits were all sitting perched precariously on the landing banisters with their legs dangling, singing 'substitutiary locomotion' from the bedknobs and broomsticks film.

Madam McGonagall asked if they had actually used the song to get their armour moving.

"Oh yes Madam McGonagall" said Bella all big eyes and earnest "We figured that the intent and appropriate sort of words might work. So we chanted 'trebuna, mercoides, trecorum satis dee' until they twitched and then we started singing."

"It's ridiculous; it isnae even a spell!" said McGonagall "For your information, the film was on'y made tae cover an event sae widespread that confundment was juist oot o' the question!"

"You mean it's real?"

"The characters involved and the broad plot is approximately as it happened, aye" said McGonagall "And the great grandchildren o' wee Charlie Rawlins will be in Hogwarts in the next few years; and the Price-Broon great-grandchildren a few years doon the line. It wasnae supposed tae ever be tak'en seriously; oh dear, if the talented can use the pretended ritual…."

"I think it's more to do with understanding the principle of transfiguration that acceptance of similarity creates change" said Bella.

"You're no' supposed tae ken that law tae quote until ye're in the third" said McGonagall severely "But it was awfu' well done. Juist dinnae do it again."

"No Madam McGonagall, thank you Madam McGonagall!" they chorused.

"Cuh!" said Bella later "Fancy it being true! Miss Price must have been a stupendously good instinctive transfigurationist!"

"Perhaps she's one of Abraxus Malfoy's byblows" said Mimi.

"No, too old" said Bella, calculating on her (rather inky) fingers. "They were both muggleborn and both missed being sent to Hogwarts. Electricity do you think?"

"Cornelius Brown was a Londoner, if he was from near where lots of stations are close together, all the electric trains could do it" said Mimi.

"This is a bit beyond us" said Maud "You two know far more about muggles than us! Of course, Charlie would have got into Hogwarts because he could do stuff, I guess Carrie and Paul were muggles. Let's go and look up his career."

"Bet he's a Gryff" said Isabel.

In which they were entirely correct.

Charlie Rawlins and his daughter and sons, Caroline , Neil and Paul were all Gryffindors.

"Neil?" said Drusilllina.

"'Cos it's a sound in the middle of Cornelius and he didn't like the long version?" suggested Maud.

"More than likely" said Bella. "There's too many Browns of different lineage, like Lavender Brown in Harry's time…..hang on though we have a Cornelius Brown born 1974, could be a grandson…..heh, Slytherin!"

"MUCH more like the spiv" approved Mimi.

The prank had however helped to cost them the cup, and they were quite unrepentant. Most of the staff seemed to have forgotten that Maud and Isabel were Gryffindor; but Bella took it in good part as the idea had been hers in the first place.

Ravenclaw were never in the running for the ease at which the older ones had fallen to the childish prank of the Mad Marauders; and Flitwick himself had docked a hundred points for that. Which also punished the main perpetrators of the prank in even handed fairness. Amos Leroy's rudeness in class throughout the year had cost them a lot more points lost – he had been excluded from transfigurations for saying 'sez you, you silly old bat' to Madam McGonagall a piece of rudery that had led to him being beaten up by selected other first years, not only Gryffindors and had seemed to think that the Professors were there as his servants.

Ravenclaw House had spent time suffering too from a lack of puddings as the rude way he treated the elves had made them refuse to serve table with more than the necessities of life. Amiya Green had spoken to him severely about that and made him apologise to the house elves; and also to Madam McGonagall who had agreed to let him back in her class next year on the understanding that on the first sign of trouble he was out again and for good.

Amos was not sure he wanted to come back next year; he seemed to do nothing but get shouted at and jinxed!

Hufflepuff came close to taking the shield too for being mostly harmless, as Jade put it; the only reasons the positions were not as close as or closer than last year was Ravenclaw's dive from grace.

The marauders' shield went this year to the Lionel Dell group of friends who had managed, as Dumbledore said, to include members of every house in their group, had managed to be an asset to the school, played up at muggle games and generally helped out and had been visible in doing so for several years.

They accepted, grinning.

"And we haven't even lost Mary-Anne to come and collect it" teased Lionel, to general laughter in at least the upper school.

"Am I NEVER going to live down my first two years?" said Mary-Anne plaintively.

"Doubt it" said Lionel.

And before they knew where they were it was time to board the Hogwarts express for home; the end of a school career for the likes of Ed Dinalt and the end of their Hogwarts career for the Prowling Marauders who were now to be the first and only Prince Peak Marauders. And Jade was to travel alone out to Austria to have the chance to see her family for a while and then spend several weeks as the jailer of Hauptman Wolf Luytens to give Severus some time off to be with his family.

Jade did not resent it; but she was a bit wistful over missing a lot of her holiday. Still, Severus had said that he had got to know the ex werewolf quite well and that he liked him a lot; it was a shame he would not open up voluntarily about his daughter.

Jade strongly suspected that her mission in life was to be Severus' daughter at Wolf and remind him of his own little girl in the hopes that he would talk to her, though Irmtraut – awful name poor child – was only a little girl of twelve or thirteen at the most; whereas a girl of turned fifteen was almost a young lady.

Still, one could try.

And then there'd be the Prince Peak girls to lick into shape!

It was going to be a busy year next year!

**_The end of this year. So, do you want the Hogwarts story first or the Prince Peak story? Or are you going to claim I should be posting both together? events won't always run at the same speed, I warn you. _**


End file.
